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| Africa: North |
| Mauritania amnesty does not cover GSPC trainees |
| 2005-09-04 |
| An amnesty for political prisoners announced by Mauritania's new military rulers does not cover a hard core of Islamists suspected of receiving training from an al Qaeda-linked group, the government said on Saturday. Justice Minister Mahfoudh Ould Bettah, part of a cabinet named by army officers after they toppled president Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya last month, said around 20 suspected Islamist extremists were still in detention after the amnesty. Seven were suspected of receiving military training in Algeria from the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), a movement which has pledged allegiance to al Qaeda and is listed by the United States as a terrorist organisation. "Their dossier is not yet closed and is still in the hands of the relevant courts," Ould Bettah told reporters. Hundreds of people took to Nouakchott's sand-dusted streets in celebration late on Friday as more than 100 other detainees -- imprisoned by Taya during 21 years of authoritarian rule -- were freed, many of them moderate Islamist politicians. Taya turned Mauritania, which straddles black and Arab Africa, into one of the most repressive countries towards Islamist movements, especially after narrowly surviving a coup attempt in June 2003. Islamist politicians are widely popular in the mostly desert nation and many Arabs say Taya deliberately exaggerated the Islamist threat to curry favour with the United States and to justify cracking down on legitimate opponents. Security forces arrested around 60 people earlier this year after Taya's government accused them of colluding with the GSPC. Washington saw Mauritania under Taya's rule as a key ally in West Africa and this year sent military experts to train its troops to tackle Islamic militants, particularly the GSPC, which it fears may be expanding in the Sahara desert. Mauritania's new prime minister told Reuters last month that the Islamic republic would remain a U.S. ally in the fight against terrorism but also said any Islamists jailed by Taya would be freed if there was no evidence against them. The United States has said it is ready to work with the country's new ruling military council and its transitional civilian government if they show they can keep their promise to organise transparent elections within two years. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #1 The only thing suitable for covering GSPC member is dirt. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O´ Doom 2005-09-04 02:04 |