Astonishing

There has been a trial. Some men were convicted of terrorist offences. They and others were not convicted of other offences as the jury could not reach a verdict. According to the BBC

Counter-terrorism officials were "dismayed" by the verdicts in the trial linking eight men to a transatlantic bomb plot, the BBC has learnt.

The BBC's Frank Gardner said there had been "astonishment" in Whitehall as the evidence was considered to be strong.

The BBC's Frank Gardner is fast developing a career as the mouthpiece of the security services. The state doesn't get the verdict is wants and - while a retrial remains a possibility - uses the state broadcasting service to moan about the outcome and talk up the evidence.

Or perhaps the state over-egged the whole airliner plot from the outset.