Watches this France arrests 12 in counter-terrorism raids

France arrests 12 in counter-terrorism raids


PARIS: Police in southern France arrested 12 suspects in sweeps against suspected Islamic militant networks on Tuesday, including three men linked to a network recruiting fighters for Afghanistan, officials said.

The roundups were part of two entirely different counterterrorism cases under investigation by French judges, and fell on the same day only by coincidence, one police official in Paris said.

Firearms were seized in one of the sweeps, another official said. The arrests come as France and many other European nations have stepped up terrorism alert vigilance amid what has been described as an abstract though heightened threat in recent weeks. The U.S. government warned Americans over the weekend to use caution when travelling in Europe.

In one of the cases, nine suspected Islamic militants were detained in southeastern Marseille and its suburbs, and authorities turned up at least one automatic rifle and a pump gun, the officials said.

In Tuesday's other roundup, two men were arrested in Marseille and another in southwestern Bordeaux on suspected ties to a Frenchman arrested in Naples, Italy, last month accused of links to an Afghan recruiting ring.

``This very morning, police operations were launched in Marseille and Bordeaux that led notably to three arrests directly linked to the fight against terrorism,'' Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux said during a question-and-answer session in parliament's lower house.

He made no reference to the nine other arrests. Asked about the U.S. travel advisory, Hortefeux said France ``has been very attentive and has heard the advisory by American authorities to their nationals'' and noted France's strong cooperation with its allies.

A third police official said agents from counterterrorism agency DCRI had detained the suspects in Marseille and Bordeaux over suspected links to a group offering lodging and fake identity papers to Islamic militants looking to come to France.
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Watch France arrests 12 in counter-terrorism raids

France arrests 12 in counter-terrorism raids


PARIS: Police in southern France arrested 12 suspects in sweeps against suspected Islamic militant networks on Tuesday, including three men linked to a network recruiting fighters for Afghanistan, officials said.

The roundups were part of two entirely different counterterrorism cases under investigation by French judges, and fell on the same day only by coincidence, one police official in Paris said.

Firearms were seized in one of the sweeps, another official said. The arrests come as France and many other European nations have stepped up terrorism alert vigilance amid what has been described as an abstract though heightened threat in recent weeks. The U.S. government warned Americans over the weekend to use caution when travelling in Europe.

In one of the cases, nine suspected Islamic militants were detained in southeastern Marseille and its suburbs, and authorities turned up at least one automatic rifle and a pump gun, the officials said.

In Tuesday's other roundup, two men were arrested in Marseille and another in southwestern Bordeaux on suspected ties to a Frenchman arrested in Naples, Italy, last month accused of links to an Afghan recruiting ring.

``This very morning, police operations were launched in Marseille and Bordeaux that led notably to three arrests directly linked to the fight against terrorism,'' Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux said during a question-and-answer session in parliament's lower house.

He made no reference to the nine other arrests. Asked about the U.S. travel advisory, Hortefeux said France ``has been very attentive and has heard the advisory by American authorities to their nationals'' and noted France's strong cooperation with its allies.

A third police official said agents from counterterrorism agency DCRI had detained the suspects in Marseille and Bordeaux over suspected links to a group offering lodging and fake identity papers to Islamic militants looking to come to France.

The three men were alleged accomplices of a Frenchman detained in Naples last month and suspected of having fought in Afghanistan. Italian newspapers reported that the man was 28 years old, of Algerian origin and suspected to be a member of al-Qaida.

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Colombia arrests 'major cocaine trafficker'

Enjoy Colombia arrests 'major cocaine trafficker'


Mr Makled says he is just a businessman
A Venezuelan businessman suspected of being part of a major drug trafficking ring has been arrested by Colombian authorities.
Walid Makled Garcia, 43, who is wanted by the US on drug charges and Colombia and Venezuela on murder charges, was caught in the border city of Cucuta.

He is accused of trafficking 10 tons of cocaine every month to the US and Europe.

Colombian police have hailed the arrest as a significant success.

Colombian police chief Gen Oscar Naranjo said that Mr Makled is on a US extradition list as "one of the world's most wanted drug traffickers".

Also known by his alias "The Turk", Mr Makled is wanted by a New York court for allegedly being part of a group which regularly smuggles large amounts of cocaine to the US and European markets.

'Pseudo-businessman'
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“
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Do you really believe I am a criminal? I'm a businessman”

Walid Makled Garcia
Suspect
At a news conference in Bogota on Friday, Gen Naranjo said Mr Makled was a "pseudo-businessman" who used legitimate business as a front for his illegal activities.

He was also said to have links with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc) Marxist rebel group, Gen Naranjo said.

But a handcuffed Mr Makled protested, saying: "It's nothing, nothing, just lies, lies... Do you really believe I am a criminal? I'm a businessman."

He accused Venezuela of planting the drugs on him so they could seize his companies.

Venezuelan authorities say they are also preparing an extradition request for Mr Makled, who they believe was responsible for two murders.

One of the victims, newspaper columnist Orel Zambrano, was killed by two gunmen on a motorcycle in January 2009 after writing about drugs cases where the Makled family had been implicated.

In 2008, Venezuelan police arrested Mr Makled's three brothers after finding 300kg of cocaine on a family ranch.

The BBC's Jeremy McDermott says Mr Makled is also believed to have been involved in the murder in Venezuela in 2008 of Wilber Varela - also known as "Soap", one of Colombia's most powerful drugs traffickers.

Earlier this month, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos visited Venezuela to mend ties between the two neighbours.

Relations had grown cold after Mr Santos' predecessor accused Venezuela of harbouring Farc rebels
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