Posted on 06/03/2003 1:55:50 PM PDT by knighthawk
RABAT, Morocco - Moroccan police arrested a French citizen Tuesday wanted in connection with the May suicide attacks in Casablanca that killed 31 bystanders.
After a manhunt, Robert Richard Antoine Pierre was arrested in the northern city of Tangiers, where he had been living with his Moroccan wife, security officials said.
Pierre, 28, is the first non-Moroccan implicated in the series of five nearly simultaneous bombings on May 16 that targeted Jewish and Spanish sites in Casablanca, Morocco's largest city, as well as a major hotel.
Twelve attackers - all Moroccans - also died in the bombings. Dozens of Moroccans have since been detained.
Authorities in the North African kingdom have said they are certain an international terror network was behind the attacks. Until they began hunting for Pierre, however, they had offered no information to back up claims that non-Moroccans were involved.
Pierre, also known as ``Lhaj'' and as ``Abou Abderrahmane,'' was identified as armed and dangerous in a notice handed out at border crossings and police stations throughout Morocco. The circumstances of his arrest were not immediately made public.
Police had begun searching for the French man after several other suspects pointed to him, claiming he gave orders in the bombings, officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Pierre converted to Islam and had been living in Tangiers since 1996. He and his wife have two children, the officials said.
Authorities believe he traveled frequently and made several trips to Afghanistan, officials said. Public 2M television said he often went to France, Germany, Belgium and Spain to buy cars that he sold in Morocco.
Officials contend Pierre was in contact with Abdelwaheb Rafiki, also known as Abou Hafs, a Moroccan Islamic cleric known for his fiery sermons and anti-Western views.
The cleric has been in jail for months on charges of ``inciting violence.'' He is believed to be one of the leaders of a homegrown Muslim extremist group, Salafia Jihadia.
Investigators have been probing the relationship between the Casablanca bombers and extremists groups like the clandestine Salafia Jihadia, which is suspected of ties to the al-Qaida network.
The May suicide bombings in Casablanca came four days after bombings at foreign housing compounds in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, killed 35 people, including nine attackers.
***Operation Infinite Freedom - Situation Room - 3 JUN 03/Day 76 - LIVE THREAD***
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