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Mauritania issues arrest warrant against Qaeda suspectsMauritania issued an international warrant Wednesday for the arrest of an opponent of President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz for supporting terror groups in the Sahel region, a justice official told AFP ... Three other Mauritanian nationals believed to be influential members of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) are also wanted.
Radical Islamist group threatens FranceThe Mauritanian Hamada Ould Mohamed Kheirou, presumed leader of an armed Islamist group active in west Africa, has again threatened France with war in a video seen Tuesday by an AFP journalist. "We again declare war on France, which is hostile to the interests of Islam," Kheirou said in Arabic, wearing dark glasses and with his head wrapped in a turban. "The jihad [holy war] will be exported everywhere it is necessary and for God, we must be ready for anything." The video also showed images of three Westerners - a Spanish man and woman and an Italian woman - who were kidnapped late in October ... The last part of the video was concerned with the ideology of the group and its ambitions, particularly "to impose shari'ah [Islamic law] across the whole of west Africa." Young black fighters were shown calling for "pure and tough" Islam.
France examines alleged AQIM threat on hostagesThe language used in a purported message from al-Qaida's North Africa arm that threatens to kill European hostages if governments take military action to save them suggests it is an authentic warning, a top French counterterrorism official said Thursday. The Mauritanian news agency ANI says it obtained the alleged statement from Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, which says that militants had intelligence suggesting French and Algerian troops were planning a rescue mission. The statement, reported Thursday, warned that the hostages would face "execution" if their governments approved any military action. The captives, from France, Britain, the Netherlands and Sweden, were kidnapped in Mali last year.
Mali army bombs Tuareg rebels, four arrested: militaryMalian army helicopters on Tuesday bombed a rebel Tuareg position, forcing them to withdraw after an attempt to seize control of the northeastern town of Menaka, military officials said Tuesday. However the rebels said they had seized two military camps and had only withdrawn temporarily to avoid civilian deaths. "We arrested four armed bandits during our counter-attack. Some are lightly wounded," said Lieutenant Habib Togola of the Malian army. "We are in control of the town and reinforcements are making their way to the town."
Mali: Armee und Tuareg liefern sich GefechteAm 17. Januar haben sich malische Armeeeinheiten und Tuareg-Kämpfer erneut schwere Gefechte geliefert. Über Todesopfer wurde nichts bekannt, vier Tuareg-Kämpfer wurden laut malischer Armee festgenommen. Militärhubschrauber waren zur Verstärkung gerufen worden, nachdem die Soldaten vor Ort unter Feuer gekommen waren. Die restlichen Tuareg-Kämpfer hätten sich dann zurückgezogen. Nach übereinstimmenden Agenturmeldungen konzentrierten sich die Auseinandersetzungen am Rande der Stadt Menaka, in der knapp 20.000 Menschen leben. Menaka liegt liegt in der nordöstlichen Region Gao, die an Niger grenzt.
aus: http://www.orf.at/#/stories/2103361/Die Armee hat nach Angaben der malischen Regierung bei Ausschreitungen in der Region Timbuktu 20 Rebellen getötet. Bei den zwei Tage anhaltenden Kämpfen seien zudem ein Dutzend Separatisten festgenommen worden, teilte das Verteidigungsministerium gestern mit.
