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Europe
France slams Bin Laden, plays down hostage threat
2010-10-29
[Daily Nation (Kenya)] France denounced Thursday new threats of attacks from Islamist bad boy leader Osama bin Laden, and played down his ties to the kidnappers of five Frenchies held hostage in the Sahara.

Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said France was in a state of "extreme vigilance" but that the grim warning had come as no surprise, and he played down Bin Laden's ability to influence events from his current hideout.

Kouchner was reacting after the author of a taped message purportedly from the Al-Qaeda kingpin said that five French hostages kidnapped in the Sahara had been taken as a warning and threatened more attacks on French interests.

"These unacceptable threats are not new," Kouchner told news hounds, playing down Bin Laden's influence over the North African Al-Qaeda affiliate that carried out September's kidnap of the Frenchies in Niger.

"Mr Bin Laden has taken this opportunity. It was opportunism. It's not him, it's not Mr Bin Laden who is holding the hostages, it's much more complicated than that," Kouchner said, on the sidelines of a diplomatic meeting in Gay Paree.

"We expected this threat and I don't think Bin Laden has the same means at his disposal as he once had," he said, minimising the threat posed by the man behind the September 11 attacks, now thought to be based in Pakistain.

Kouchner was speaking before authorities had confirmed the threat was genuine, but his front man Bernard Valero later briefed news hounds that its authenticity "can be considered as confirmed in light of initial checks."

"It only confirms the reality of the terrorist threat," he said.
Posted by:Fred

#2  WAFF > [long Artic] THE CREATION OF A VIABLE MUSLIM WAR THREAT.

* DAILY TIMES.PK > [SIS CHief John Sawers] UK SPY CHIEF: NUKES [proliferation] A GREATER THREAT THAN TERRORISTS.

IOW, NEW NUKES-WMDS/CBRN(E) ARMED MILITANT GROUPS + MOVEMENTS, versus TRADITIONAL LOW-TECH TERRORIST INDIVIDUALS-N-CELLS.

* PAKISTANI DEFENCE FORUM > [Muslim-centric Anti-Secularist Public Education] RELIGIOUS DEMANDS RISE IN FRENCH STATE SCHOOLS:STUDY. Marge numbers of French Muslims are refusing to integrate or co-exist in general French Society, demand not to learn anything related to Israel, Jews, Holocaust + Zionism. DEMAND SHARIA IN BOTH PRIVATE + PUBLIC EDUCATION.
Posted by: JosephMendiola   2010-10-29 01:22  

#1  ION WORLD NEWS > [Newsvine]AL-QAEDA SMELLS LIKE IRANIAN INTELLIGENCE.

D *** NG IT, I'm still waiting for KURT "SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT" COBAIN + TOM "SNIPER" BERENGER to return my Island Wear Shirts.
Posted by: JosephMendiola   2010-10-29 01:09  

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