France nabs 10 for acts linked to terrorism
Source: Agencies |
April 5, 2012, Thursday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
POLICE yesterday arrested 10 people in raids across France as part of a crackdown on radical Islamists in the wake of attacks on soldiers and a Jewish school, officials said.
The arrests were carried out as part of a preliminary investigation opened on Monday into terror-linked activity in France, a judicial official said.
Another official close to the investigation said the 10 were suspected of links to Islamist websites and of threatening violence in online forums. Some of them may have been trying to attend jihadist training camps along the Afghan-Pakistan border, he added.
Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity, citing policy.
The raids in five cities, mostly in southern France, were the second in several days and appeared to be part of a new focus on rooting out radical Islamists in France.
President Nicolas Sarkozy, who is facing a tough re-election, has promised to hunt down radicals and hold them to account or kick them out of the country.
But he has come under criticism for using the raids and expulsions to further his campaign and for not doing enough to prevent the killing spree last month in and around Toulouse that left seven dead.
On Tuesday, preliminary charges were filed against 13 people picked up in a sweep last week. Nine of them were jailed. The four others were released but must report to officials.
Some of those charged were reportedly calling for Muslim Sharia law to be implemented in France.
The second official emphasized that those arrested on Wednesday were not linked to Forsane Alizza or to the Toulouse attacks.
Sarkozy on Tuesday declared a "zero tolerance" policy for hate speech and radical ideologies at odds with French values and for those who use their role as preachers to do so.
The arrests were carried out as part of a preliminary investigation opened on Monday into terror-linked activity in France, a judicial official said.
Another official close to the investigation said the 10 were suspected of links to Islamist websites and of threatening violence in online forums. Some of them may have been trying to attend jihadist training camps along the Afghan-Pakistan border, he added.
Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity, citing policy.
The raids in five cities, mostly in southern France, were the second in several days and appeared to be part of a new focus on rooting out radical Islamists in France.
President Nicolas Sarkozy, who is facing a tough re-election, has promised to hunt down radicals and hold them to account or kick them out of the country.
But he has come under criticism for using the raids and expulsions to further his campaign and for not doing enough to prevent the killing spree last month in and around Toulouse that left seven dead.
On Tuesday, preliminary charges were filed against 13 people picked up in a sweep last week. Nine of them were jailed. The four others were released but must report to officials.
Some of those charged were reportedly calling for Muslim Sharia law to be implemented in France.
The second official emphasized that those arrested on Wednesday were not linked to Forsane Alizza or to the Toulouse attacks.
Sarkozy on Tuesday declared a "zero tolerance" policy for hate speech and radical ideologies at odds with French values and for those who use their role as preachers to do so.
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