A ram-raiding against Jewish target in Toulouse

A synagogue in the residential suburb of Bagatelle in Toulouse, south of France came under attack on Monday night when a car was got up to speed against its gates at 21h45 (local time). Another car, with petrol bombs was also found nearby. According to Anne-Gaelle Baudouin-Clerc, spokeswoman for the district prefecture, "nobody was hurt in the blaze which has not been claimed." The rabbi was giving a lecture when the attack happened.

Nigeria/France/Piracy: a French vessel hijacked off Nigeria waters

The French company Bourbon said on Monday that pirates hijacked on Sunday one of its vessel and detained nine crew members in southern Nigeria. According to a statement, the captain of the Bourbon Leda spoke with the company and said that all the crew members were unharmed. Stephanie Elbaz, Bourbon spokeswoman precised that the crew was composed of "five Nigerians, two Ghanaians, one person from Cameroon and one from Indonesia". She also added she had no informations about the number of pirates and their demands.

Bourbon provides specialist boats for the oil and gas industry in this waters oil-rich region. Nigeria's delta region and the nearby Gulf of Guinea are among the world's most pirate-infested waters, ranking only after sea routes near Somalia and Indonesia. It is the second time in two months that a boat belonging to Bourbon is hijacked in the region. Last October 31, seven French and three African oil workers were seized off the coast of Cameroon. They were freed after 11 days.

France/Terrorism:  trial begins for Djerba synagogue bombers

(Gamma/Photo News)

A French court will begin the trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Christian Ganczarski, a German convert to Islam, and Walid Nouar who are suspected to be linked to the 2002 suicide bombing against the synagogue in Djerba, Tunisia. The attack that occured on April 11, killed 14 German tourists, five Tunisians and two French

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, believed to be one of the planners of the 9/11 attacks in the US, is suspected of organising the suicide attack. He is being held in Guantanamo Bay and will be tried in his absence. Christian Ganczarski, who spent time in Afghanistan and was in close contact with Osama bin Laden, worked with Al-Qaeda as a computer expert. He will face charges of helping to prepare the attack. Walid Nouar, the brother of the Djerba suicide bomber, will also be tried for his involvement in preparing the attack.  All of them are charged in France with "complicity in attempted murder in relation to a terrorist enterprise" and face a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail. The trial is expected to last five weeks.

Somalia/France/Piracy: French navy intercepted 2 pirate attacks and captured 19 assaillants

(Bassiganc Gilles/Gamma/Photo News)

The French defense minister Hervé Morin has congratulated on Sunday the crew of the neavy vessel Jean de Vienne after it had thwarted on Sunday two pirate attacks against cargo ships in the Gulf of Aden, Somalia. Ten pirates were arrested while they were about to Hijack the Donat, a Croatian cargo ship. During a second attack, the French neavy intercepted also 9 pirates who tried to hijack the Vulturnus, a Panamanian cargo ship. The Jean de Vienne was patrolling in the South-east of the Yemeni port of Al Mukalllah. She confiscated 11 assault rifles, two rockets and two rocket launchers according to a Defense Ministry statement.

France is part of the EU anti-piracy naval task force in the Somali waters. Though the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) reported a drop in piracy in December, pirates still managed to hijack a cargo vessel with 28 Egyptian crewmembers on board on Thursday. There are still about 15 ships, with more than 200 crewmembers, in the pirates’ captives.

Israel/Terrorism: Israeli cabinet could study a 2 days truce proposal

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told President Shimon Peres on Tuesday that the country was “currently at the first stage of the operation” in the Gaza Strip. Haaretz daily however reported that unnamed “ senior defense officials”  had recommended the government to study the idea of a 48-hour truce suggested by France. According to them, the massive military operation has already indicated to the Hamas that the “rules of the game had changed”. Moreover, in case of a failure of the ceasefire, the Defense forces could launch  a ground offensive very quickly. However, Infrastructure and former Defense minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer warned that a truce would allow Hamas “to regain strength... and prepare an even stronger attack against Israel.”

On the ground, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak maintained his refusal to open the Rafah crossing “without a Palestinian authority and European observers or we would be violating international agreements that we have endorsed.” “Egypt will not allow anyone to put pressure on its government or exploit the Palestinian issue to obtain political advantages,” added President Mubarak, saying that it was the divisions between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas where mainly responsible of the present situation.

AQIM denies its leader was injured and threatens France 

In a statement released today on Shoumoukh Al-islam (Glory of Islam) the Algerian terrorist organisation AQIM denied that its chief, Abdelmalek Droukdel was injured a few days ago.

Last Monday, the daily Ennahar, which enjoys good contacts with the Algerian security services, reported that Droukdel was wounded in a clash between an AQIM Katiba (group) and the Algerian Army. 

 

 AQIM said today that its leader is “in good health and will remain “a thorn in the throat of the France’s sons”.  AQIM added that Droukdel is preparing “new actions” against French interests.  

 

Those last days, several forums and other websites linked to the AQIM accused France and the United States of providing satellite imagery to the Algerian army, those images « helping the army to localize and destroy » AQIM units.  

 

We assess that AQIM could try to attack Algerian and French or other western interests in the near future to prove that it keeps its operational capacity.  

A leftist group claims the French Institute’s attack and affirms its support to “the 6 of Tarnac”

The online French newspaper Mediapart said this week-end that the attack of the French Institute (cultural centre) in Athens, last Friday, has been claimed by a leftist group. In the clam signed “Comité Invisible” (Invisible Cell), the group affirms its solidarity with the “6 of Tarnac”. The “six of Tarnac” were arrested on November 11 and charged with multiple sabotages against the French Railway, SNCF. They are suspected to belong to an “ultraleft” group named “Le Comité invisible” which published, a year ago a book on the “Coming Insurrection”. The cell is part of the so called “autonomous movement”, a galaxy of small groups which are used to confront the police in riots and practice sabotage and low level “terrorism”. A court must decide later this week if Julien Coupat, the presumed leader of the “6” will remain in Jail.

Around twenty rioters attacked the French Institute Friday night. They threw Molotov cocktails on the building. A strong link has always existed between the “ultraleft” in France and in Greece particularly in Thessalonica and Athens.

Greece/France/Civil unrest : the French institute in Athens targeted

About twenty Greek rioters attacked on Friday the French Institute of Athens by throwing Molotov cocktails. No important casualties or significant damages have been reported. A nearby cash machine was also damaged.  "Spark in Athens, Fire in Paris. Insurgency is coming," said a slogan painted in red on the building walls. "France, Greece, uprising everywhere," said another.

Riots have occurred in Athens for the last two weeks. Demonstrators protest first against the death of a 15 years-old boy, killed by a policeman. Rioting has wrecked hundreds of cars, banks and businesses. The young Greeks voiced their anger at unemployment and low wages, along with protesting the boy’s killing.

France/Afghanistan/Defence: Paris said to be planning to send more troops in Kabul

According to the daily newspaper Liberation, the French Defence Ministry is planning to deploy additional troops in Afghanistan. "This French squad would put an end to the current fragmentation of French soldiers on Afghan territory" and ensure "the transfer of the security in Kabul to the Afghan forces," said Liberation.

This information contradicts Hervé Morin’s declarations, who said Wednesday on RTL that Paris does not plan to send more troops in the country. “France has already made an effort, but our own security is played in Afghanistan. We can not leave this country back in the hands of the Taleban. It can’t become the rear base of terrorism because if you do not fight terrorism there, you'll have a day at home," said the Defence Minister. Colonel Benoit Royal, spokesman for the Army, said he was unable to confirm the information of reinforcement.

The French troops have been in Afghanistan since 2001 and have reached nearly 3,000 soldiers, about 5% of all Western troops currently deployed in the country. "In comparison, the United Kingdom provides 16% of the military effort. London has just announced it will dispatch 2,000 additional troops," says the website of Liberation.

7 islamists arrested in Paris

Seven persons suspected to be closed to the jihadist networks have been arrested this Tuesday in Paris

Bombs defused in Paris

(AFP)

Five packages of explosives have been found and disarmed this Tuesday in a department store in Paris, French police say . The Printemps Haussmann store was evacuated and cordoned off after the discovery, the AFP news agency said.

AFP said it had received a letter signed by a group calling itself the Afghan Revolutionary Front warning of "several bombs" placed in the store. It quoted the French interior minister saying the packages did not include any detonation device.

France/Terrorism : 7 people arrested in Paris

Seven persons close to the jihadist networks have been arrested this Tuesday in Paris and its suburbs. The central directorate of domestic intelligence (Direction centrale du renseignement intérieur - DCRI) and the Anti-terror section of the criminal brigade in Paris have first arrested "a young Frenchman converted to Islam". Six other people related to him were also arrested.

All are suspected to belong to or to attend the radical Islam networks. They could also have known other persons who have lived in unsetteled region like Iraq. According to a source closed to the case, one of the seven persons arrested could have published "threat on the Internet".

Sources said that these arrests are not linked to the explosives found earlier this morning in a Paris department store.

L’alerte de Paris n’évoque pas la piste islamiste

Le « modus operandi » des terroristes qui ont déposé 5 pains de dynamite au grand magasin parisien « Le Printemps » n’évoque en rien les méthodes habituelles de la mouvance djihadiste. Il est, évidement, extrêmement difficile, quelques heures à peine après la découverte de ces explosifs d’émettre un avis définitif sur toute cette affaire mais plusieurs incohérences méritent d’être soulignées :

1)     Il n’existe aucun précédent d’attentat attribuable à la mouvance djihadiste et pour lequel les autorités aient été prévenues à l’avance. Le but des islamistes est de terroriser la société par la mort massive de leurs victimes, la pratique des attentats-massacres, pas par la simple menace.

2)     Il n’y avait aucun dispositif de mise à feu, et la dynamite ne pouvait donc pas exploser. A nouveau cela n’a rien à voir avec les méthodes habituelles des djihadistes

3)     La mouvance al-Qaïda utilise fort peu voire pas du tout la dynamite (sauf dans les attentats de Madrid, en 2004). Elle privilégie, en général, les mélanges de produits chimiques pouvant être achetés librement dans le commerce

4)     Le nom du groupe qui a revendiqué « l’attentat manqué », « Front Révolutionnaire Afghan », n’évoque en rien, à nouveau, les noms habituels de groupes islamistes qui, en règle générale, sont nettement plus « connotés ». De même, la signature de la revendication - « Vive l’Afghanistan Libre » - n’est pas celle que des islamistes aurait probablement choisie. 

En l’état actuel du dossier, deux pistes nous semblent donc pouvoir être privilégiées. Celle de l’extrême gauche violente, d’abord, dont l’opposition à la guerre en Afghanistan est connue, ou, mais cela nous semble moins probable à l’heure actuelle, celle d’une petite « cellule spontanée » de «sensibilité islamiste » mais n’étant pas connectée à la mouvance globale du djihad et n'étant pas encore « arrivée à maturité ». Enfin, l’hypothèse d’une « simple » provocation ne peut, à l’heure actuelle, être exclue….

The Paris alert does not call Islamic terrorism to mind

The modus operandi of the terrorists who placed 5 sticks of dynamite in the “Le Printemps” department store in Paris does not call jihadist networks’ methods to mind. It is obviously very hard, a few hours after explosives were found, to give a definite assessment on the whole story but several incoherence should be pointed out:

1)      There are no precedents of attacks attributed to jihadist networks in which authorities were previously warned. The goal of Islamic militants is to inspire terror by the number of casualties, the use of massacre-attacks, but not by threats.

2)      The packages did not include detonation devices which means that the dynamite could not explode. Again, this has nothing to do with the methods usually used by jihadist networks.

3)      Al Qaeda networks rarely, if not never, use dynamite (except in the Madrid attacks in 2004). They usually use mixtures of chemical products that can be freely bought in stores.

4)      The name of the group that claimed this “attempted attack,” the “Afghan Revolutionary Front” is, again, not similar to those generally used by jihadist groups that are not as “neutral.” The end of the statement that says “Vive l’Afghanistan libre” (“long life free Afghanistan”) is not something that jihadists would have used.

As of now, two leads appear likely. First, violent leftist movements as they are notoriously opposed to the war in Afghanistan. Then, but that seems less likely at this point, a small “spontaneous” cell loosely inspired by Islamism but not linked to global jihadist networks and that would not yet be ready. Lastly, the hypothesis of an isolated act of provocation should not be ruled out at this point.

The « jihadist » arrested in Paris linked to arrests in Brussels, last week

The seven people arrested today in or near Paris are linked to the “Afghan cell” which was dismantled in Brussels last week and was preparing a suicide attack, probably in Europe.

The main suspect – a young French of 29, converted to Islam – was under investigation since a few months. It appears that the man had “some links” with the Jihad propagandist Malika el-Aroud, arrested last week with others in Brussels.  El-Aroud and five others are waiting an appearance in court, later this week, to decide if they will remain in jail.

Two other French were arrested in the South-East of France, at the end of the last week in connection with this “Belgian” file.

It seems that the investigation of the French and Belgians polices and intelligence services uncovered a “new Afghan network” sending volunteers to train in Afghanistan. Some of them are probably due to come back in Europe to commit terrorist attacks.

It is particularly interesting to underline that the European Jihad networks which were focusing on Iraq those last years are now redefining their attention on Afghanistan which will certainly become the major challenge between the Global Jihad Movement and the international community in the next months.

2 cars burned in front of a Greek consulate in Bordeaux 

Two cars have been burned during the night in front of the Greek consulate in Bordeaux, Southwestern France. Writings about riots in Greece have been found near the scene.

Colombia/terrorism: government offers cash and freedom to rebels

(Danny Gys/Photo News)

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has proposed to the guerrilleros cash rewards and freedom if they abandon the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and they set free some of their hostages. Alvaro Uribe has made this offer on Wednesday after Wilson Bueno, alias "Isaza," deserted the FARC to live in France where he is arrived yesterday. Bueno would be granted a residency permit and receive a monthly stipend of 800 euros (1,040 dollars) from Bogota to help him adjust to life in France after spending 12 years in the Colombian jungle, a French source said.

"The government gives freedom and a cash reward to rebels who release hostages and lay down their weapons, whatever the nature of the crime they are involved in, although they cannot be pardoned or granted amnesty”, Uribe said. Bueno would receive indeed a 430,000-dollar reward because he left the FARC in October with the lawmaker Oscar Lizcano who was held captive for eight years.

Criticising Uribe’s decision, Attorney General Mario Iguaran said Colombian law prohibits pardoning crimes such as those carried out by the FARC.

France/Civil unrest : demonstration for state education

Many cities accross France were affected this morning by students demonstrations. Protestators demand the government "to invest into state education". They protest against the state governement decision to axe 13 500 jobs by the end of 2009.

In Brest, One demonstrator was arrested while a small group of youths roamed the streets trying to enter into a private school. Some places and cars parked were also targeted by looters. In a school in Nantes, "about 200 youths entered the classrooms, emptied fire extinguishers, sprayed teachers and students and destroyed textbooks," said the authorities. Bins were also overturned on the road.

Spain/Terrorism: Madrid fears ETA terror attack

The Basque terrorist group ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna) is expected to retaliate after the arrests of six of its members, including its suspected leader, the Spanish government warned on Tuesday. Spain's interior ministery warned that ETA was likely to carry out a major action.

Police from France and Spain have actually arrested on Monday the suspected new leader of the organisation Aitzol Iriondo Yarza, alias Gurbitz. These arrests indicate a victory for both the two countries. French Interior Minister Michele Alliot-Marie hailed the arrests as the fruit of stepped up cooperation between France and Spain to crack down on the terrorist movement.

France/Terrorism: police arrested new ETA military chief 

The French police has confirmed the arrest of the alleged new military chief of the Basque separatist group ETA after verifying his documents and other possession he was carrying with him. Aitzol Iriondo Yarza and two of his accomplices were arrested on Monday in the village of Gerde, southwest France, while they were carrying several revolvers and fake documents.

Michele Alliot-Marie, the French interior ministry said in a statement that one of them "had already been identified as the alleged successor to Txeroki as ETA military chief". Miguel de Garikoitz Aspiazu Rubina, alias "Txeroki" or Cherokee, who was wanted in connection with numerous attacks was arrested on November 17. Earlier in May, Javier Lopez Pena, one of the leader of the ETA was also arrested in France.

The European Union and the United States considers ETA as a terrorist group and has been blamed for the deaths of more than 800 people during its fight for Basque.