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PARIS, Oct 26 (Reuters) - A French court on Thursday gave a nine year prison sentence to a Moroccan man accused of associating with hijackers involved in the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, an official at the Paris prosecutors office said. Karim Mehdi was accused of "associating with wrongdoers in connection with a terrorist undertaking" -- a generic charge that in France covers a wide variety of criminal activity. The prosecution suspected that at the time of his arrest he was planning an attack on a tourist complex in France's Indian Ocean territory, La Reunion. Police believed Mehdi knew Ramzi bin...

Five suspected Islamic militants have been arrested in eastern France as part of an inquiry into the 11 September 2001 attacks, police sources say. The five are thought to be linked to a Moroccan man with alleged ties to the al-Qaeda network. They were arrested late on Tuesday in the Alsace towns of Selestat and Colmar as part of an investigation conducted by two anti-terrorist judges. They were taken to counter-terrorism headquarters in Paris on Wednesday. The raids took place on the orders of anti-terror investigative judges Jean-Louis Bruguiere and Jean-Francois Richard. The men can be held for up to...

News, June 2003, Al-Jazeerah.info French Question Two Men Over Al-Qaeda Links Agence France Presse Arab News PARIS, 7 June 2003 — French anti-terrorist investigators were yesterday questioning two men — a Moroccan and a German — arrested this week at Charles de Gaulle Airport near Paris on suspicion of membership in extremist groups linked to Al-Qaeda. Karim Mehdi, 34, who was arrested on Sunday, is suspected of having contacts with the Sept. 11, 2001 hijackers; Christian Ganczarski, 36, who was detained the next day, is believed to have been in liaison with the suicide bomber who blew up a Tunisian...

France catches al-Qaeda suspects TERROR LINKS: The men are suspected to have been involved in helping carry out the Sept. 11 attacks on the US as well as a recent synagogue bombing in Tunisia AP Saturday, Jun 07, 2003,Page 6 French anti-terrorism authorities have arrested two men -- a Moroccan and a German believed to be a top al-Qaeda recruiter -- as part of investigations of the Sept. 11 attacks and a deadly bombing at a Tunisian synagogue, judicial officials said on Thursday. The officials said they believe the suspects -- Moroccan national Karim Mehdi and Christian Ganczarski of Germany...

PARIS - France has arrested a German man suspected of links to the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States and a suicide attack at a Tunisian synagogue last year, police said on Friday. Christian Ganczarski, 36, was arrested on Monday, one day after French police detained a Moroccan man also wanted in connection with September 11 attacks, blamed on the Al-Qaida network. A French police spokesman said Ganczarski was suspected of links to the synagogue bombing in Djerba in April 2002 and the September 11 attacks, but it was not clear what role he may have played in...

PARIS (AP) - French authorities investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks in the United States have arrested two men - a Moroccan and a German believed to be a top al-Qaida recruiter - in the last two days at the Paris airport, judicial officials said Thursday. The officials said they believe there's a link between the two suspects. On Sunday, Karim Mehdi, a 34-year-old Moroccan, was taken into custody at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, the officials said on condition of anonymity. He had arrived from Germany and planned to leave to the French island of La Reunion...

Moroccan Arrested in France Over Sept 11 Attacks 1 hour, 47 minutes ago Add World - Reuters to My Yahoo! PARIS (Reuters) - A Moroccan man wanted in connection with the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States has been arrested in France, a judicial source said on Thursday. Karim Mehdi, 34, was arrested Sunday. Thursday he was put under official investigation -- one step short of pressing charges in France -- for "participation in an association of criminals linked to terrorist activities." The source said Mehdi was suspected of being connected to an al Qaeda cell in Hamburg,...

SEPT 11 SUSPECT HELD A man suspected of involvement in the September 11 terrorist attacks on America has been arrested in France. Moroccan Karim Mehdi  is believed to have links to a German-based al Qaeda terrorist cell which supplied one of the September 11 hijackers, a French official said on condition of anonymity. The 34-year-old will appear before a judge on Thursday and will then be placed under investigation for connection with the attacks - one step short of being charged. The French intelligence service took Mehdi into custody on Sunday at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, the official said. He was in transit on a...