Posted on 07/13/2002 12:05:59 PM PDT by PJeffQ
Italy nabs eight new al Qaida suspects
By Eric J. Lyman
From the International Desk
Published 7/13/2002 10:34 AM
ROME, July 13 (UPI) -- Italian police said Saturday they had arrested eight men suspected of providing logistical support for Osama bin Laden's al Qaida terrorist network, as local authorities tightened security in Rome, Florence and Venice amid reports of possible additional attacks.
The suspects -- all but one of whom are North African Muslims -- were apprehended Thursday after a sting operation in Milan. A ninth suspect eluded police and is being sought.
In a statement released Saturday, police said the men were seized for trafficking false identity papers, including forged Italian passports, drivers' licenses, residence permits and government documents from Belgium, England, France, Germany and Spain.
The statement said police suspect the men may have provided false identity papers to three or more of the hijackers who carried out Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon just outside of Washington.
"Preliminary information indicates that these men have been providing logistical support (for al Qaida) for many months," a police official told United Press International on condition of anonymity. "There is evidence that they may have done so for some of the men involved in the Sept. 11 attack."
The newest detentions bring the total number of suspected al Qaida operatives arrested in Italy since Sept. 11 to at least 55. Law enforcement officials have declined to provide details about suspects in custody, and it is not clear how many have been released.
According to local media reports, at least two of the men apprehended Thursday -- 36-year-old Mohamed Kazdari and his 32-year-old brother Said Kazdari -- had already spent time in jail on forgery-related charges.
The arrests came as police stepped up security in several parts of Italy following reports of potential attacks on tourist venues, U.S. government posts, the Vatican and a Jewish neighborhood.
A Ministry of Justice official told UPI about 50 percent more police are on duty in Rome, Florence and Venice. Television news showed small submarines patrolling the harbor in Venice, extra police near the U.S. Embassy and the main Jewish synagogue in Rome and military air patrols over some areas.
It is the third time this year that warnings associated with al Qaida have sparked extra security efforts in parts of Italy.
Late last year, U.S. officials said an Islamic cultural center and adjacent mosque in Milan were part of al Qaida's main base in Europe, something leaders of the mosque have denied.
Police did not say how long they expected to maintain heightened security.
Copyright © 2002 United Press International
Hmmmmm. I wonder if it would hurt North African Muslims' feelings if they were profiled, because, as of yet, I have yet to hear about any arrests of blond haired, blue-eyed American women over the age of 50 to have done anything related to terrorist attacks. I guess that's just coincidental.
MILAN, Italy (AP) -- Eight men were arrested for allegedly supplying fake passports and documents to members of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network, Milan anti-terrorism police said on Friday.
A ninth suspect eluded capture and is being sought, said Massimo Mazza, head of Milan's anti-terrorist squad.
The arrests occurred on Thursday night in the Milan area, a police statement said. Police seized false passports, stolen identity cards and blank documents that could be used to issue papers giving foreigners permission to live in Italy.
Police said the suspects -- six Moroccans, a Tunisian and a Romanian -- were part of "vast trafficking in false documents." All were accused of criminal association and counterfeiting documents.
Two Moroccan brothers -- Mohammed Kazdari, 37, and his 32-year-old brother, Said -- allegedly supplied documents to Essid Sami Ben Khemais, thought to have been bin Laden's European logistics chief, Mazza said.
The brothers, who were released from prison last August after serving time for dealing in false documents, were described as the operation's ringleaders.
"There were sure links between the Kazdari brothers and Ben Khemais," Mazza said. "But at the moment we can't confirm which documents were given to Ben Khemais and used by Ben Khemais."
Ben Khemais, also known as "the saber," was convicted earlier this year in Milan of criminal association with the intent to obtain and transport arms, explosives and chemicals.
U.S. authorities have called Milan an important logistical base for al-Qaida and described a mosque and Islamic Cultural Center here as the main al-Qaida station house in Europe.
Mazza said that no U.S. documents were found in the raids Thursday and that those seized were for use in European and North African countries. "For now, there is no confirmation" the documents were used to organize the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States, he said.
The eight captured were identified as the Kazdari brothers, Mohamed "Hamid" Ouad, 35, Mustapha Ouad, 28, Abdelali "Ali" Kisra, about 33; and Abdellah "Abdul" Grich, 28 -- all from Morocco -- as well as Rafik Ben Salem Touati, 32, of Tunisia, and Ioan Benone Danci, 34, of Romania.
Police declined to identify or give the nationality of the fugitive.
In Venice, security was stepped up in the old Jewish neighbourhood, with police boats checking for explosives in canals and police officers guarding entrances to the narrow alleys leading into the district.
Italian police have not elaborated on what prompted the measures, but security was stepped up in Venice earlier this year after the tourist destination was named a possible terrorist target.
There is a translation of the Italian prosecutor's case against Khemais available here. It is an interesting read, and mentions involvement of a third Kazdari brother, Youssef.
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