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Politics : World Affairs Discussion -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: GUSTAVE JAEGER who wrote (1886)	9/12/2002 9:02:15 PM
From: average joe	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 3959

Friends of yours? english.pravda.ru

To: GUSTAVE JAEGER who wrote (1886)	9/12/2002 9:33:22 PM
From: lorne	Respond to of 3959

Algeria launches major air assault on Islamic insurgents SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM Wednesday, September 11, 2002 CAIRO — Algeria's military launched its largest air attack on Islamic insurgents in more than two years. Algerian sources said the attack was led by Su-24 bombers and Mi-24 attack helicopters in the northern part of the country. They said the target was the Salafist Brigade for Combat and Call, a splinter group of the largest Islamic insurgency network, the Armed Islamic Group. Algerian air and ground forces pounded Salafist strongholds on Monday and Tuesday in the governorate of Skikdah near the Moroccan border, Middle East Newsline reported. The sources said an undetermined number of insurgents were killed and injured. The last major air operation against Islamic insurgency strongholds took place last January, the source said. They said the current operation combines air and ground units with the heavy use of Russian attack helicopters. "The intensification of the fight against terrorism by my country should not create confusion between the crimes of terrorist groups and Islam, a religion of peace, equity, tolerance and which respects human dignity," Algerian President Abdul Aziz Bouteflika said prior to the offensive. The Salafist stronghold is said to be composed of several buildings in remote areas of northern Skikidah. The group, led by Hassan Khatab, is also said to be operating near the capital Algiers. Algerian newspapers been reporting intensified military operations against the Salafist over the last month. They said the military operation began in the northeastern Kabylie province with heavy artillery shelling in the Djurdjura mountains. The offensive then moved to the nearby areas in the Bejaia region to which Salafist insurgents fled. The sources said Algeria has received aid and training from such countries as France, South Korea and the United States in counterinsurgency operations. They said Russia has delivered most of the upgraded 22 Su-24 fighter-bombers to Algeria, some of which are believed to have already seen action over the last few months. Algeria has also sought counterinsurgency cooperation with Indonesia. Bouteflika met Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri and the two men discussed a range of security cooperation. On Wednesday, Algeria hosted African governments to discuss cooperation against insurgents. Morocco, Algeria's neighbor and rival, does not plan to attend the four-day meeting. worldtribune.com

To: GUSTAVE JAEGER who wrote (1886)	9/12/2002 9:34:28 PM
From: lorne	Respond to of 3959

Morocco cracks down on Islamic militants Special to World Tribune.com MIDDLE EAST NEWSLINE Monday, September 2, 2002 CAIRO — Morocco has launched a new crackdown on suspected Islamic insurgents that includes closing illegal mosques. The crackdown is said to be the start of implementation of a new plan meant to reduce Islamic unrest in the kingdom. The plan increases security forces around Rabat and regards Islamic unrest as a threat to national security that requires a comprehensive approach to monitoring and supervising Islamic movements and clerics. Over the weekend, Moroccan authorities arrested 20 suspected Islamic insurgents. The insurgents were said to have come from the Salafist Jihad group. Moroccan officials said the plan has been drafted and overseen by Gen. Hamidu Anikri, chief of Moroccan domestic intelligence. Anikri has relayed the plan as well as recommendations to governorates throughout the kingdom on how to deal with Islamic groups and mosques. The plan includes the establishment of 50 security centers around Rabat. Rabat is Morocco's capital and has a population of 3.5 million. Islamic sources said that so far more than 1,000 Islamic activists have been arrested over the past few weeks. They include the arrest over the last few days of 27 suspected members of the Salafist Jihad group. In addition, about 30 mosques have been shut down, the sources said. The crackdown by the kingdom came amid the arrest of at least two Al Qaida cells in May. The insurgents linked to Osama Bin Laden were accused of planning to launch suicide bombings in Morocco as well as attack NATO ships in the western Mediterranean. Moroccan security sources have acknowledged the arrests but said the number of mosques shut down has been exaggerated. The sources said four mosques were closed after they were found to have been used by Islamic insurgents to preach violence against the kingdom. The sources said the mosques were also deemed as illegal and located in buildings that were not suitable for a large number of congregants. But they said Moroccan authorities have become stricter in their monitoring of mosques to ensure that they don't recruit for Islamic insurgency groups. One measure that has been ordered by the new security plan is for the halt of all trade in all of Morocco's 24,000 mosques. Security sources said the measure is meant to stop the sale of books and video tapes that encourage unrest and insurgency. They said the measure has already been implemented in Casablanca. worldtribune.com