North Africa

Last Updated (Monday, 29 November 1999 19:00) Written by Evan Kohlmann Saturday, 21 February 2009 19:00

The NEFA Foundation has obtained a new communiqué, dated February 18, from Al-Qaida's Committee in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) claiming responsibility for the kidnapping of U.N. special envoy for Niger Robert Fowler, his Canadian aide Louis Guay, and four European tourists. According to the statement, Fowler and Guay were kidnapped two months ago, while the European tourists -- identified as Edwen Dyer (England), Marianne Petzold (Germany), Werner Greiner (Switzerland) and Gabriella Burco Greiner (Switzerland) -- were seized on January 22nd. The statement added that "the mujahideen reserve their right in treating the prisoners in accordance with Islamic Shari'a."

AQIM Denies Surrender of Commander Abou Tamim Amine

Last Updated (Monday, 29 November 1999 19:00) Written by Evan Kohlmann Sunday, 15 February 2009 19:00

The NEFA Foundation has obtained and translated a new communiqué, dated February 3, denying reports of the surrender of Abou Tamim Amine (a.k.a. "Ben Touati Ali"). According to the statement, “following the… imprisonment of Brother Amine-the commander of the al-Ansar Brigade, may Allah protect him-last week while traveling en route to a jihadi mission, several news agencies mentioned the news, and they cited two stories. The first story, the accurate one, included the phrase 'the capture of.' But, the other false story is the one that certain media agencies, directed by the intelligence agencies, rushed to report-alleging that Brother Amine had surrendered to the apostates, and that he had served as their agent for a long while. From this, a bigger lie was extracted, built upon the first lie: namely, that our organization has been infiltrated from top down… Accordingly, we strongly deny the news of the surrender of Brother Amine, the commander of the al-Ansar Brigade (central zone)-may may Allah free him from his shackles-and we confirm that our brother was captured last week while in the midst of a jihadi mission. We ask Allah to ease his hardship, and allow us to liberate our prisoners from the Algerian Guantanamo."

AQIM’s Abu Musab Abdel Wadoud Calls for Terror Strikes in Vengeance for Gaza

Last Updated (Monday, 29 November 1999 19:00) Written by Evan Kohlmann Wednesday, 04 February 2009 19:00

The NEFA Foundation has obtained and translated a new audio recording (dated January 13) of the top commander from Al-Qaida’s Committee in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Abu Musab Abdel Wadoud, titled, “Gaza - Between the Hammer of the Jews and Crusaders, and the Nail of the Apostates.” Abdel Wadoud condemned the recent Israeli invasion of Gaza and insisted that Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika is just as responsible for the plight of Gaza as the much-maligned Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak: “[the one] who has laid siege to Gaza and set his dogs, with their iron bars, upon the Egyptian people seeking to rescue their brothers, isn’t any more deceitful or shameless than the one who is preventing Muslims in Algeria from conducting peaceful protests… That person is Bouteflika, beloved by the Jews… That is Bouteflika and his generals, who appointed a Jew as an advisor in their damned government.” The AQIM commander demanded that Algerian soldiers and policemen abandon their support for Bouteflika’s government: “when will you stop directing your weapons and the bombs of your aircraft against your own people? At what point? Aren't you mortified by the thought of Allah [knowing about] the bombing runs of your aircrafts across Jijel, Boumerdas, and Tizi Ouzou over our heads, synchronized with the Israeli bombings targeting our brothers in Gaza?” Abu Musab Abdel Wadoud further called upon faithful Muslims across North Africa to launch terror strikes on “Jewish”, “crusader”, and “apostate” targets in vengeance for Israeli attacks on Gaza: “I call upon you to begin campaigns of destruction that will not end until the injustice against your brothers comes to a halt, putting pressure on this silent, treacherous regime… in particular, our brothers and beloved ones in Mauritania, the people of steadfastness and jihad. And so, I say to them, today is your day to support your brothers, [because] purifying Mauritania of the Israeli flag raised aloft in its skies, shooting the Jews, and closing their embassy is [our] duty… The peaceful demonstrations aren't sufficient anymore for Mauritania to respond to the voice of truth and honesty. The permanence of this relationship [between Mauritania and Israel] and its continual presence is not merely a sin against you alone, but it is also [a sin] against Islam and all its faithful… I call upon you to wage jihad, and attack the Western interests, everywhere… And to those in the Islamic Maghreb at large… lend your hands to the mujahideen, and coordinate with them in destroying Jewish and crusader interests in our regions without mercy or remorse. Carefully choose your targets, and provide your brothers with the intelligence. Plan quietly, rely on secrecy and silence, depend solely upon Allah, and do not seek anyone’s permission to destroy the killers of prophets and the cross-worshippers who are allied together in order to demolish us mercilessly and remorselessly."

AQIM Denies Alleged Germ Warfare Experiment Gone Wrong

Last Updated (Monday, 29 November 1999 19:00) Written by Evan Kohlmann Tuesday, 27 January 2009 19:00

The NEFA Foundation has obtained and translated a new communique from Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) denying recent reports that a group of Al-Qaida fighters perished in Algeria after mistakenly contracting fatal doses of the plague during a biological warfare experiment gone wrong. According to the statement, “on January 6, 2009, several journalists wrote reports, based upon information they had received from their bosses in the Algerian intelligence bureaus, about dozens of mujahideen who died from contracting the plague. According to their claims, this disease was spread throughout the ranks of Al-Qaida organization and that it will soon cause the collapse of this organization! …We wanted to announce that there was no truth to these rumors… We don't know anything about this so-called plague, because it never happened-other than perhaps in the minds and hearts of those collaborators who falsely carry the title of 'journalists.' We announce to our Islamic nation that the purpose of falsified reports such as these is to frighten young men away from joining the jihad and to become weapons on the battlefields… The real plague that threatens our nation's existence is this apostate group of treacherous rulers who have allied themselves with the Jews and the Christians in order to destroy Gaza, to sell out Palestine, and to trample over our beliefs, honor, and sacred possessions."

AQIM Claims "Battle of Zerouate" in Mauritania

Last Updated (Monday, 29 November 1999 19:00) Written by Evan Kohlmann Monday, 13 October 2008 19:00

The NEFA Foundation has obtained and translated a new statement from Al-Qaida’s Committee in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) claiming responsibility for a September 14, 2008 attack on a local military convoy in the Mauritanian region of Zerouate. According to the statement, “this attack was carried out to avenge the oppressed prisoners in the Mauritanian jails… This battle has been executed as a clear message to the governing military regime: your sins against the nation in general and against the Muslim youth in particular will not pass without punishment.” The AQIM also cautioned its supporters concerning false communiqués broadcast by various news agencies, naming the “Al-Fajr Media Center” as the only authorized, legitimate source for official statements from the group.