It's my crime scene ...
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| Europe |
| Breakdown of the Spanish al-Qaeda arrests |
| 2005-12-23 |
| An Islamic network which recruited extremists at mosques and prayer meetings was broken up by the Intelligence Service of the National Police in a number of provinces in Spain in the early hours of Monday morning. The gang converted these radicals into mujaheddin, fundamentalist guerrillas or suicide bombers, and sent them to Iraq to fight in the âHoly Warâ. Operation La Union, as it was called, ended with the arrest of 16 alleged activists, among them the leader of the group and three imams. Two more gave themselves up in Malaga and Seville the following day, bringing the total to 18. The mammoth operation ended with the simultaneous arrest of militants in Malaga (9), Seville (2), Lérida (3), the Balearic Islands (1), and Granada (1). Over 100 police officers from the Intelligence Service, the Special Operations Group, the Police Operational Group, the Explosive Specialists Squad and the Scientific Police were involved in the operation. Out of the nine extremists arrested in the province of Malaga six were resident in the city of Malaga - three Moroccans, a Saudi Arabian, a Frenchmen and a Ghanian - and three in Nerja. According to sources close to the case the police made searches in six flats in Malaga. Computers, Islamic documents and mobile telephones were seized in order to continue with investigations. The activists were taken to the Provincial Police Station and then to Madrid to be brought before the judge in the National Court. Among those arrested in Nerja was the alleged leader of the network, a 25-year-old Iraqi called Hiyag M., better known by his alias of âAbu Sufianâ. According to the police, he was in âvery close contactâ with the Al Qaeda network in Iraq, which is led by the second most wanted terrorist in the USA, Abu Musab Al Zarqawi. The police detected numerous Internet communications between âAbu Sufianâ and the group surrounding Al Zarqawi. The Ministry of the Interior maintained that âAbu Sufianâ, who used all types of âfiltersâ to communicate with his acolytes and to prevent his presence in Spain being known, was the âemirâ who led the recruitment, indoctrination and training of the fundamentalists who were sent to Iraq, âprobably to commit acts of terrorism as suicide bombersâ. The Minister of the Interior, José Antonio Alonso, didnât say exactly how many âmartyrsâ had been sent by the network operating out of Nerja, although it was revealed that two new extremists were ready to travel to Iraq. According to sources involved in the investigation, âAbu Sufianâsâ gang sent mujaheddin from Madrid to Istanbul. Al Zarqawiâs network then took charge of the recruits. The existence of this network was first detected by the police last January. They were aware that a radical group was based in Malaga and that this group distributed âreligious sermonsâ with a âSalafist Combatâ content. In a matter of weeks they discovered that, as well as preaching, this network also forged documents - the man arrested in Granada was an Algerian who had this task - for guerrilla fighters prepared to take part in the âHoly Warâ or jihad. The organisation allegedly run by âAbu Sufianâ was highly structured and divided into four clearly defined sections: a hard core which, according to the Ministry, was âcapable of committing acts of Islamic terrorismâ, albeit outside Spain; another group in charge of the recruitment of new militants and whose activities included financing; a third group which forged documents; and finally one which formed the âideological apparatusâ of the network. âAbu Sufianâ kept the network united despite the distance thanks to constant communication via Internet and periodic meetings in mosques and private homes. These meetings were allegedly financed by José A.D.M., a 47-year-old Nerja man who was a convert to Islam. He donated money to the leader of the network with whom he had âa close personal relationshipâ. It was later revealed that one of those arrested in Malaga, Mohammed G., who was born in Accra, may have been an important link between Spain and the September 11th bombings in the USA as he was in close contact with the Al Kuds mosque in Hamburg where they were planned. In Malaga & province Hiyag M., alias âAbu Sufianâ (Iraqi, aged 25): Considered the leader of the gang, he was in contact via Internet with people close to the Al Qaeda leader in Iraq. Surrounded by tight security, he personally controlled the mujaheddin. José A.D.M. (from Nerja, 47): A Spanish convert to Islam. He is comfortably off and âAbu Sufianâ took advantage of this. They have travelled abroad together. Bahbah El H. (Moroccan): He lived in the country with the above two and had been the imam at the Ceuta mosque. Oussama A. (Moroccan, 22): Considered one of the main members of the gang. As an extremist he was prepared to commit suicide in Iraq. Mohammed G. (Ghanian, 36): The present imam of Calle La Union mosque in Malaga. He was reputedly in charge of vetting âAbu Sufianâsâ contacts. He was in close contact with Hamburg mosque, where he allegedly sent false documents. Mohamed S.N. (French, 25): He returned from a trip to Saudi Arabia with extremely radical ideas and showed interest in the transfer of members of the Tabligh Al Dawa Al Islam group, which he belongs to, to the Al Qaeda terrorist network. Awad A.G. (Saudi, 29): The ideological specialist of the group. Mohamed M. (Moroccan, 50): Former imam at a Malaga mosque, he allegedly took false documents to Hamburg. Raghib E.H. (Moroccan): In close contact with the La Union imam. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #2 "YOU IN THE LAB COAT! PUT DOWN THE MASS SPECTROMETER AND GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" It's my crime scene ... |
| Posted by: doc 2005-12-23 08:48 |
| #1 Over 100 police officers from the Intelligence Service, the Special Operations Group, the Police Operational Group, the Explosive Specialists Squad and the Scientific Police were involved in the operation. "YOU IN THE LAB COAT! PUT DOWN THE MASS SPECTROMETER AND GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" |
| Posted by: Glains Theash7392 2005-12-23 08:23 |