Five 'Al-Qaeda Suspects' Held In France

by Can Tran    December 20, 2007

The five men being questioned are part of a larger group of eight that have been held earlier this week in France. The three other men have been released so far by French authorities. They are believed to be part of one of Al-Qaeda’s support networks. The network is called Land of the Islamic Maghreb (AQLIM).

The group has said that it was responsible for the bombings on UN offices in Algeria on December 11. Almost 40 people have died in those bomb attacks.

The bombings in Algiers had claimed the lives of seventeen UN employees. It was deemed the deadliest attack on the United Nations since the 2003 bombing in Baghdad. The 2003 bombing claimed the lives of 22 people.

The eight were arrested in raids taking place in both Paris and Rouen on Tuesday. Police officials have talked anonymously. According to French newspaper, Le Figaro, authorities took computers and other communication equipment in those raids.

The newspaper had said that the equipment would be sent to AQLIM’s headquarters in Algeria. While three were released, the other five are held at France’s intelligence headquarters.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

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