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| Africa: Subsaharan |
| Chad kills 43 GSPC |
| 2004-03-12 |
| Chad’s army has killed 43 Islamic militants during two days of heavy fighting near the border with Niger, the government said Thursday. The government said in a statement that those killed belonged to the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat, a hard-line Algerian Islamic militant group that recently pledged its allegiance to al Qaeda "The government forces have neutralized the threat from the terrorists," the statement said. Washington has vowed to assist Mauritania, Niger and Chad to combat security threats. Chad said among the dead were nine Algerians and nationals from Niger, Nigeria and Mali -- all countries where the United States fears al Qaeda is recruiting militants and setting up cells. This is the first we’ve heard of non-Algerian fighting with the GSPC. Looks like Sahraoui has indeed expanded their horizons. Three government soldiers were killed and 18 were wounded, the statement said. The army seized weapons, including mortars and pickup trucks with mounted heavy machine guns, and satellite phones, it said. The army found the group of Islamic militants in Zouarke, 80 miles from Zouar -- a remote desert town in northern Chad near the border with Niger, the statement said. Soldiers captured five prisoners, including a Chadian said by the government to be a member of a the country’s rebel movement. The main Chadian rebel group is the Movement for Democracy and Justice, otherwise known as MDJT. This is the first I’ve heard them being Islamist or having ties to the GSPC. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #5 Note this may be one reason Powell et al are playing nice with Sudan - current govt of Chad is pro-Sudan (if not in fact Sudanese puppet) would be hard to do this without Sudan's cooperation. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-3-12 9:35:47 AM |
| #4 if they're pursued across borders like this effort apparently did, I doubt they'll be "alive" long. Good hunting! |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-3-12 9:22:13 AM |
| #3 Dan is referring to Nabil Sahraoui, who was reported as taking over the GSPC last year. It's interesting that judging from the countries of origin, the Salafists have recruited black Africans as members. That seems like more evidence that the Salafists are becoming a true regional outfit across Africa, rather than an Algerian insurgent group with bases/support in other countries. |
| Posted by: Paul Moloney 2004-3-12 4:11:41 AM |
| #2 Sorry but the Sahraoui are the tribes from former Spanish Sahara who are not happy with Moroccan occupation. If they are like their Algerain cousins then they are predominatly Suffi and legitimate targets for the GSPC wahabists. |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-3-12 3:18:26 AM |
| #1 Chad’s army has killed 43 Islamic militants... So would those be ... "hanging Chads"? (rimshot) Sorry to be juvenile ... think of it as some therapeutic gloating after 24 hours of seething over Madrid. |
| Posted by: Another Dan 2004-3-12 2:57:16 AM |