HAMBURG - German authorities are to obtain an arrest warrant for an Algerian radical who held 32 European tourists hostages, some of them for more than five months. Confirming a report in Monday’s Der Spiegel news magazine, federal authorities said Abderrassak al-Para is being sought on charges of extortion, kidnapping and terrorism. A one-time paratrooper with the Algerian air force, Para is the self-styled "emir" of the GSPC terrorist group which seized the tourists in a remote region of Algeria last February.
"I am the most holy emir of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat. Emirs need money, holy men need hand grenades rocket launchers. Now stick ’em up!" |