Polisario Insiders Reportedly Helped al-Qaeda Kidnap Western Aid Workers from Refugee Camps

EIN News ^ | 11-4-11 | Driftwood1

[Driftwood1]

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Three European aid workers continue to be held by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) after being kidnapped from refugee camps controlled by the Polisario Front near Tindouf, Algeria last week. According to reports, Polisario members in the camps helped the kidnappers by supplying weapons and directions to the victims' location. The two Spanish and one Italian hostages are being held at an undisclosed location. They remain alive, though no demands or conditions for their release have been made, despite considerable efforts by the international community.

Agence France Press (AFP) reports that "less than ten unarmed AQIM militants had entered the Sahrawi refugee camp in Tindouf, western Algeria, where sympathizers of the Polisario Front gave them weapons and helped them seek out the hostages, who were working in the camp." An AQIM mediator further confirmed that the armed assailants were "wearing the Polisario uniform."

US officials warn that rising terrorism and instability in the vast, lawless areas of Africa's Sahel, which includes the refugee camps controlled by the Polisario—a separatist group seeking to control the Western Sahara—pose a significant and growing threat to US interests.

[Zhang Fei]

Looks like previous administrations were right all along in supporting the Moroccan king against Polisario rebels.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Driftwood1. It’s another phony nationality, like the Palestinians.