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Europe

Bruguiere says radical Islamist threat in Europe is increasing

2007-02-15

The risk of terror attacks in Europe is high and is increasing, France's leading anti-terrorism judge said, warning that a recent alliance between al-Qaida and a North African terrorist group poses a grave threat. The Salafist Group for Call and Combat, known by its French initials GSPC, staged seven nearly simultaneous attacks in Algeria on Tuesday, targeting police in several towns east of Algiers, killing six and injuring around 30, according to officials, police and hospital staff. Al-Qaida in Islamic North Africa, the new name for the GSPC, claimed responsibility for the strikes. "The GSPC wants to carry out attacks in Europe, especially in France, Italy and Spain, and destabilize North Africa," Jean-Louis Bruguiere told The Associated Press on Tuesday night in New York. French counterterrorism police arrested 11 suspects as part of efforts aimed at dismantling an alleged al-Qaida-linked recruiting network to send radical Islamic fighters to Iraq, police officials said Wednesday. Nine suspects were detained in and near the southern city of Toulouse before dawn Wednesday, following the arrest of two others late Tuesday at Paris' Orly airport, police said. The two had been sent home by Syrian authorities, investigators said. Bruguiere said the threat to Europe is "pretty high." France rates four on a scale of one to five, he said He linked the increased threat level to the U.S.-led war on Iraq. "Actors of jihad have become radicalized and have tried to demonstrate that their means have not been diminished since September 11," he said. As Western countries have developed new measures to fight attacks by Islamic radicals, the terrorists have also come up with a strategy to fight globally, he said. Despite the growing danger of further Islamist strikes in Europe, there have also been successes in anti-terrorism efforts. An attempted attack by GSPC in France was foiled by domestic counterterrorism groups, and the French government is cautiously monitoring the group's activities, Bruguiere said. European countries are working closely together to prevent further attacks and international cooperation. He said that cooperation with the United States in particular has improved significantly in recent years.

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Africa North

GSPC releases al-Qaeda talking points

2006-02-23

The Salafist Group for Call and Combat (GSPC) distributed in late-January 2006 to jihadist forums the sixth issue of “Al-Jama’a,” a periodic magazine devoted to issues of the Algerian jihad. This issue, 36-pages in length and commemorating the occasion of Eid al-Adha, the Feast of Sacrifice, contains articles contrasting the faith and resolve of the mujahideen vis-à-vis the Muslim people in general, and “renegade rulers” in particular; congratulating the mujahideen in Iraq; disparaging Algerian President Abd al-Aziz Bouteflika and Algerian press for fabricating and aggrandizing claims of victory against Algerian mujahideen; and a vivid and lengthy description of a battle between fourteen mujahideen and Algerian authorities in the Sahara desert, near a village called Hajira, during the month of Ramadan. An editorial opening the magazine lauds the mujahideen in Iraq for their “victories accompanied by the beginning of the countdown for the American cowboy,” and argues that jihad is the only “language” understood by the enemy and should be taken into account by the Muslim nation. This is followed by a piece titled, “Between Two Festival,” by Salah Abu Muhammad, that draws a dichotomy between those Muslims who are concerned more about materialistic and ostensibly Western values during Eid al-Adha, and the mujahideen in the “cold mountains” who would rather care about jihad. The article states: “How will they slaughter, during the days of this blessed festival, a herd of renegades? If only their swords could do their work on crusading or Jewish targets! Or at least: how can they blow up a bomb?” In the same vein, the article, “Patience Increases Victory,” serves to explain that only those Muslims who embrace patience and jihad will attain Paradise. Another section of the magazine reports current events in the Islamic world community, including the speech by Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri in which he “demanded that the idiot Bush confess his defeat at the hands of the Mujahideen,” mujahideen operations in Iraq allegedly rendering 40,000 Americans killed, collaborations between the Algerian government and the “enemies of the Ummah,” and arrest campaigns in Morocco, which the GSPC interprets: “It seems that exposing ‘terrorist’ cells has become a preferred hobby carried out by this collaborating regime in order to prove to its Jewish and Christian masters that is a loyal dog of theirs”. This section also elaborates upon the “impression” of Bouteflika’s fading on the reconciliation initiative. The Algerian newspapers allegedly collaborating with the Algerian president are also thrashed in the article, “Hired Newspapers and Imprisoned Facts,” written by Abu Abdullah Ahmad, in which he argues that the publications condemned the purported maltreatment of Muslims in Iraq by American soldiers, yet do not write of the maltreatment of Algerian mujahideen. They also question why the mujahideen have not been interviewed to present their views. Other myriad articles express condolences for the death of Abu Omar al-Seif, a religious leader and purported al-Qaeda leader in the Chechen jihad, describe operations executed by the GSPC, and criticize a partnership between Algeria and the European Union, believing that the EU seeks to use Algeria as a cultural foothold to “rebuild the geopolitical map in the Islam world”.

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Africa North

GSPC takes credit for Dallas port bombing

2005-12-31

The Salafist Group for Call and Combat (GSPC) in Algeria issued a communiqué dated December 24, 2005, in which they claim responsibility for a double bombing targeting Algerian forces in the district of Boumerdas, at the port of Dallas. The message indicates that “after good reconnaissance,” the first explosive struck a military ship and upon the arrival of another group to support and rescue the victims, a second explosive was detonated, allegedly resulting in “heavy” losses to the enemy. Further, the group states that the “devils” sough to obfuscate the extent of the casualties in the media; however, the loud noise from the explosion and attention of nearby residents forced the media to publish the accurate news.

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Africa: North

GSPC sez they ambushed Algerian troops

2005-02-25

On February 22, 2005 Algeria's Salafist Group for Call and Combat (al-Jam'a al-Salafia lil-Dawa was Qital) claimed responsibility for an ambush operation waged against Algerian troops in the state of Batna on February 18th. The Salafist Group for Call and Combat (GSPC) has in recent years taken over the role once held by the Algerian Armed Islamic Group (GIA) as the preeminent Jihadist group in Algeria. Designated by the United States Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control in March of 2002, the group currently boasts upwards of 4,000 fighters. While they do not always claim responsibility for their operations, the GSPC is considered responsible for most of the over 900 individuals killed within Algeria from Jihadist violence. After detailing their most recent operation, the group closes its message with a promise to all those opposed to its cause: "You, the enemies of God, the defectors (from Islam), there will be no truce, no dialogue, no conciliation, no security agreement and no covenant of protection with you, but rather the destruction, the ruin, the assassination and the devastation. Assassination, Assassination be upon you. You, the enemies of God!"

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