Posted on 12/08/2004 9:15:07 PM PST by Straight Vermonter
OSLO (AFP) - The founder of radical Islamist group Ansar al-Islam was questioned in Oslo by German police ahead of the arrests in Germany of three men suspected of plotting to attack visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allaiwi.
German police interrogated Mullah Krekar in Oslo early last week and he is thought to be linked to at least one of the men arrested on Friday on suspicion of planning attacks during Allawi's visit, the Norwegian daily VG reported Sunday.
All three have been ordered held over their alleged membership of Ansar al-Islam, described by German authorities as a foreign terrorist organisation.
A fourth man, a Lebanese, was also arrested on Saturday in Berlin on suspicion of supporting Ansar al-Islam.
Krekar, who has lived in Norway since 1991, founded the group in December 2001, but insists that he has not been its leader since May 2002.
"The content of what happened in the Oslo court has been classified by the court, so I cannot offer concrete comments," Krekar's lawyer Brynjar Meling said in a public television interview.
He confirmed however that German police among other things wanted details of his client's European contacts.
Asked whether the telephone number of one of the men arrested on Friday was found in Krekar's possession, Meling told NTB news agency that, when Krekar was arrested in the Netherlands two years ago "he had an electronic phone book containing up to 2,000 names and numbers... so it is possible that the police found this man's telephone number at Krekar's" home.
Krekar's brother Khalid Faraj Ahmad meanwhile told NTB that Krekar's interrogation last week was in connection with an old case and that the interview had been planned for months.
"He was questioned as a witness in a case concerning several Kurds who were arrested in Germany a long time ago," Ahmad insisted.
PoNG
It's so much safer to be an islamic extremist in Old Europe than in Iraq.
More comfy, too.
ping
All three have been ordered held over their alleged membership of *Ansar al-Islam, described by German authorities as a foreign terrorist organisation*.
>>>
Ya think?!
>>>PING<<<
Pong
EXPATICA.com: "CHRONICLE OF A FOILED PLOT - HOW IRAQIS WERE TAILED" (December 8, 2004)
http://www.expatica.com/source/site_article.asp?subchannel_id=26&story_id=14818&name=Chronicle+of+a+foiled+plot+%2D+how+Iraqis+were+tailed
AFTENPOSTEN.no/english: "KREKAR ACCUSED OF BIN LADEN PRAISE German media claim that controversial Norwegian resident mullah Krekar congratulated Osama bin Laden shortly after the terrorist attack on the USA on Sep. 11, 2001." (December 8, 2004)
http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article927167.ece
ON THE NET...
AFTENPOSTEN.no/english - Search Term: "KREKAR"
http://tekst.aftenposten.no/tekstcgi/tekst.cgi?stdsok=nwaisok&felt2=url&q1=krekar&q2=english
GOOGLE - Search Term: "KREKAR"
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22KREKAR%22&hl=en&lr=&filter=0
Ping
SIERRATIMES.com - RSS - Newswire (AFP): Oslo - "EXILED ANSAR FOUNDER COULD BE LINKED TO ALLAWI ATTACK PLOT" (December 5, 2004)
http://www.sierratimes.com/rss/newswire.php?article=/afp/20041205/wl_mideast_afp/norway_iraq_germany&time=1102248034&feed=iraq
Haven't heard from this sleazebag in a while.
A prominent Chechen "minister in exile", an ex-member of Chechen terrorist group, Akhmed Zakaev visited Norway recently. UK is currently harbouring Zakaev, rejecting the extradition demands from Russian government. Zakaev is on Interpol warrant. Funny, but it looks like UK has a long tradition of giving refuge to all sorts of weirdos starting from Ayatollah Homeini, one-eyed nutter Mullah Omar down to Akhmed Zakaev.
Apparently, as it was commented by Norwegian Ministry for Foreign Affairs, it was a private visit (so they did not know Zakaev was visiting). Surely, if he'd sent a fax they would have arrested him. (Passport control + Interpol lists? Surely not in Norway)
Thanks for the ping. It seems that he as well is involved in Finland
http://www.norwaypost.no/content.asp?cluster_id=26392&folder_id=1
and Sweden http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1120855/posts
They should send him to Jordan to meet the 72 sour grapes http://syrcom.cua.edu/Hugoye/Vol6No1/HV6N1PRPhenixHorn.html.
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