Seven suspected Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb fighters were killed during clashes with security forces in the Djefia region. The fighters were killed in the town of Charek while security forces conducted anti-terror operations. More than of 50 Islamist fighters have been reported killed since December 2009.
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has offered men, weapons, and training to Nigerian Muslims in order to fight Christians in the conflict-torn central city of Jos. “We are ready to train your people in weapons, and give you whatever support we can in men, arms and munitions to enable you to defend our people […]
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has stated that it will postpone the execution of the French hostage, Pierre Camatte, indefinitely. The group has demanded the release of four AQIM members held in Mali prisons for the hostage, whom the group pledged to kill at the end of January if its demands were not met. […]
Violence between Christians and Muslims has erupted in the northern Nigerian city of Jos. The death toll has reached 149 over two days as Nigeria™s vice-president, in the absence of President Yar™Adua, has ordered troops to the city to halt the violence. The cause of the fighting is unclear; Jos has been gripped by sectarian […]
The Borno State Police arrested 18 suspected Boko Haram members in the city of Maiduguri. Through intelligence sources, the police caught wind of the suspected Boko Haram members entering the state. The suspects were taken before a judge who remanded their cases after they plead not guilty.
Unidentified Islamists have killed the Algerian military commander of Bajaia district in Bejaia province and an army colonel at Allaghane, 250km east of Algiers. Two Islamists were killed the night before when authorities ambushed their vehicle at Boudjelil. Two Islamists escaped the ambush.
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has released a statement demanding the release of four AQIM fighters held in Mali™s prison system within 20 days, otherwise they will execute French hostage Pierre Camatte. “We give 20 days to fulfill our demands, or the two governments shall be fully responsible for the life of the French […]
Ten Islamic fighters have been killed by Algerian security forces after a tip-off led to the authorities intercepting their vehicles in a rural region near the village of Slim. A “large quantity” of weapons was seized from the vehicles. Security officials state that 30 Islamists have been killed over the last month.
Fourteen members of a terror group called Fath Al Andalous, or Conquest of the Andalusia, have been sentenced to prison terms ranging from four to 15 years for planning attacks in southern Morocco. The group was in advanced stages of preparation for an attack with the use of chemical weapons on tourist sites in Agadir […]
Spain has refused to pay Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb a $7 million ransom for the release of three Spanish aid workers who were abducted from their convoy when traveling to Nouadhibou from Nouakchott. Prime Minister Jose Rodriguez Zapatero made the government™s position “clear and firm.” The kidnapping has compelled Spain to align its […]
Six Coptic Christians and one security guard were killed and three other persons were injured during a Coptic Christmas midnight Mass in the town of Nag Hamadi, 40 miles from Luxor. The gunmen sprayed the crowd with an automatic weapon from their vehicle as Mass ended. It is suspected that the attack came as retaliation […]
An offshoot of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, dubbed the Sahara Emirate, has released a propaganda video. The leader is a former member of AQIM, and the group is made up mostly of young Mauritanians. The group claims to operate in Mauritania, Mali, Algeria, and Morocco, and is suspected of being behind the kidnapping […]
An engineer working for the Canadian corporation SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. was kidnapped by five armed gunmen on the way to work. The abducted engineer was forced into the car of the gunmen in Djebahia, 150km from Algiers. The engineer was working on a water treatment plant. Police are negotiating for the employee™s release.
Clashes near the Mali border between Niger authorities and an unidentified group have left nine gunmen, seven Niger soldiers, and a civilian dead. The authorities captured vehicles, guns, and ammunition. The clashes come days after two gunmen were killed by authorities. The crackdown on rebels and bandits was prompted by the attempted kidnapping of six […]
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has demanded that the Spanish government pay a ransom of $7 million and release several of its members in exchange for three Spanish hostages. The Spanish government has sent medicine to AQIM to aid one of the wounded Spanish hostages who was shot in the leg during the abduction.
Thirty-five people were killed in Bauchi, northern Nigeria, when an Islamist sect, dubbed the Kata Kalo, had their violent internal bickering spill into the streets after members accused one another of causing the illness of their leader. The group was armed with spears and arrows and targeted a local military unit, causing the death of […]
Three undisclosed people suspected of being involved in the attack on six Saudi tourists in the western town of Djambala, Niger, have been detained by authorities.The six Saudi tourists along with two Malians were traveling to Mali when they were attacked by unidentified gunmen, leaving three of the Saudi tourists dead and three seriously injured.
Unidentified gunmen have killed three Saudi tourists and wounded three others in Niger. The three wounded tourists were taken to a hospital in Niamey. The attack happened near a village called Djambala, near the Mali border, where Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and Taureg rebels are known to operate. The six Saudi tourists were […]
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of two Italian nationals in eastern Mauritania. The audiotape, broadcast on Al Arabiya, claimed the kidnapping was politically motivated due to “crimes of the Italian government in Afghanistan and Iraq.” The husband, Sergio Cicala, and his wife, Philomene Kabouree, were taken from their minibus […]
One Algerian soldier was killed when a roadside bomb planted by Islamists exploded 40km east of Tizi Ouzou in northeastern Algeria. Two civilians were injured in the explosion as well. Security forces hunting Islamists in the area have defused a number of home-made roadside bombs in the last few days.
The Algerian military is sending 3,000 additional troops to its borders with Mali, Niger, and Mauritania in an effort to thwart Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb™s movement across the border. The lockdown will restrict border crossings into Algeria to just eight, and will be supplemented with additional military patrols, new surveillance spots, and permission […]
The leader responsible for the kidnapping of an Italian national and his Burkinabe wife has been arrested when attempting to return to Mali. The man, identified as Abderrahmane Ben Meddou, says he hails from a northern tribe in Mali and was offered payment of $22,000 USD for “surveillance and positioning of victims” for Al Qaeda […]
An Italian national and his wife from Burkina Faso that were kidnapped Friday have been identified by Mauritanian authorities as Sergio Seguella and Data Bazeri Silma. They, along with the driver, were abducted by armed men when attempting to cross the Mali border at Mneicira, near Kobonni in eastern Mauritania. Reports indicate their vehicle was […]
An Italian has apparently been kidnapped from his 4×4 vehicle in Mauritania near the Mali border. The Italian man and his wife, originally from Burkina Faso, are suspected of being abducted by Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. The abductions of the Italian nationals comes just weeks after the kidnapping of three Spanish nationals in […]
Three accused Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb members who were arrested in Ghana this week have been extradited to New York, the first extradition of its kind from west Africa. They are accused of supporting the cocaine trade into western Africa that has seen a substantial increase in drug activity over the last year. […]
Algerian security forces killed four Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb members. The fighters were caught driving towards Msila, 250 km southeast of Algeria, when they were ambushed. Security forces have conducted a number of operations in the past weeks, killing over 20 Islamists and capturing numerous others.
Ten suspected Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb members have been arrested in separate raids in Algiers and Setif. The four men arrested in Setif are suspected of providing logistical support for AQIM while the six members in Algiers are accused of extorting money from small businesses in the capital to finance the terrorist organization.
More than 20 Islamist fighters have been surrounded by Algerian authorities in three operations in Boumerdes province. Security forces killed four Islamist fighters in Bouira, one of whom was a Libyan. A 30-man network that supported Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb was apprehended outside the city of Constantine; the men’s roles in the terrorist […]
Al Andalus, the media arm of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, has demanded from the Spanish government “the freedom of our tortured detainees from your prisons” in exchange for the three Spanish hostages. Three Spaniards and one French national are being held in northern Mali at AQIM™s “security bases” and are reportedly in “good […]
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb released a video claiming responsibility for the kidnappings of a French national in Mali and three Spaniards in Mauritania. “France and Spain will be informed later of the legitimate demands of the mujahedeen,” the statement read. AQIM “hardliner” Abu Zeid, who was responsible for the ordering of the execution […]