Posted on 04/11/2008 7:03:39 AM PDT by Alouette
NOUAKCHOTT, April 10 (Reuters) - Mauritanian police arrested a suspected al Qaeda militant accused of killing four French tourists as he attempted to avoid capture disguised as a woman, a government spokesman said on Thursday.
Marouf Ould Haiba is one of four suspected al Qaeda militants accused of killing the French tourists during a roadside picnic last Dec. 24.
Fellow suspect Sidi Ould Sidna escaped from police custody outside a courtroom last week, sparking a manhunt that has led to two fatal shootouts in the usually sleepy capital Nouakchott that have killed three people in as many days.
Police arrested Haiba around midday on Thursday in the capital Nouakchott's populous Arafat district, government spokesman Hindou Mint Hainina said.
"He was disguised as a woman and was carrying a weapon under his dress. He had been trailed by the police for several days and is currently being questioned in Nouakchott's central police station," he said.
A police official said Haiba was wearing habaya, the black robes favoured by some strict Muslim women that cover the head and entire body with only a small hole for the eyes.
The style of dress has become more common on the streets of Nouakchott in recent years, but is still fairly rare in a country where colourful dresses and headscarfs covering only the hair are more common.
"He was caught thanks to various means of communication recently put in place," the police official said.
Police have set up a special communications and intelligence unit to gather information on suspects in the Dec. 24 killing and other attacks that have roused fears al Qaeda cells in Morocco and Algeria are moving operations further south.
A policeman and a suspected Islamist militant were killed in a shootout between police and suspected al Qaeda gunmen on Monday. One of two civilians injured in a botched police arrest on Wednesday died later of his wounds. (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com) (Reporting by Noiselle Champagne; writing by Alistair Thomson; Editing by Daniel Flynn and Mary Gabriel)
Warning! This is a high-volume ping list.
Next, they'll be posing as dogs ;-) ---they don't like dogs, either.
The 9/11 murderers shaving and depilating themselves as if they were exotic dancers.
The Taliban slathering their faces with mascara and pancake.
Al-Qaeda types dressing in women's clothing In Iraq and elsewhere.
Police knew he wasn't a woman because there was no man nearby beating "the woman" out of boredom, as tradition dictates.
It’s hard to tell from that photo whether it’s really an al Qaeda suspect, or just a Muslim woman who forgot to shave.
This is the real reason for the Islamic requirement that women wear veils. Cross dressing has been a favorite means of evading capture since the days of the pedophilic caravan raider himself. Islam has always been a criminal enterprise first and foremost.
“Mauritanian police arrested a suspected al Qaeda militant accused of killing four French tourists as he attempted to avoid capture disguised as a woman....”
Nice try, slime bag!....Hope you hang!
A police official said Haiba was wearing habaya, the black robes favoured by some strict Muslim women that cover the head and entire body with only a small hole for the eyes.....
His fat ankles gave him up......
WHAT?
You mean Hillary Clinton is not a woman?
BOY Islamic rage boy must be ugly woman LOL!
When did Janet Reno start working in Mauritania?
Pigs would be a more apt description.
Good catch Mauritanian police!
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