South Africa nabs Al-Qaeda operatives

JOHANNESBURG – South African police nabbed suspected al Qaeda operatives ahead of last month’s elections in an operation that led to arrests in Jordan, Syria and Britain, the chief commissioner was quoted as saying on yesterday.

National police commissioner Jackie Selebi said the alleged al Qaeda members were deported five days before the April 14 elections and suggested that intelligence-sharing allowed authorities in the three other countries to take action, a radio report said. “We arrested some people who had evil intentions against this country – five days before the election.We got these people to leave,” Selebi said.”The result is that you saw in Jordan, in and around those days, a number of people arrested who were al Qaeda.A number of people were (also) arrested in Syria as a result of our operation.”Jordan foiled a massive chemical attack linked to Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda network in late April which resulted in six members of the network being arrested and four others killed in a series of raids.”In part of this operation, in London, the British police found boxes and boxes of South African passports in the home of one of these people, or an associate of these people, which says to me there must be a link that people are able to acquire these documents,” Selebi told parliament’s safety and security committee Wednesday.Selebi did not elaborate and his office declined to give details.The director of the Institute for Security Studies at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, Mike Hough, said it was highly unlikely that al Qaeda would have wanted to disrupt elections in South Africa.”If you think of the South African government’s fierce resistance against a war in Iraq and its sympathy with the Palestinians …then an al Qaeda plot against elections in South Africa sounds a bit far-fetched,” Hough told AFP.However, it was likely that some al Qaeda members were based here.”Al Qaeda has decentralised tremendously since its headquarters in Afghanistan were attacked.There have been fears from the United States that al Qaeda cells might re-establish themselves in Africa.”In terms of the global threat of terror the Americans did ask South Africa to be on the look-out for al Qaeda,” Hough said.But if the government had real evidence against the suspects it would probably have arrested and tried them in South Africa before extraditing them.”It sounds like there was not enough evidence against them and that is why they were deported immediately.”South Africa held peaceful elections on April 14, which returned the ruling African National Congress to power and saw President Thabo Mbeki elected to a second five-year term.The reports of al Qaeda activity in South Africa came as US Attorney General John Ashcroft warned that Osama bin Laden’s network was poised to stage a new attack on the United States.- Nampa-AFP”We arrested some people who had evil intentions against this country – five days before the election.We got these people to leave,” Selebi said.”The result is that you saw in Jordan, in and around those days, a number of people arrested who were al Qaeda.A number of people were (also) arrested in Syria as a result of our operation.”Jordan foiled a massive chemical attack linked to Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda network in late April which resulted in six members of the network being arrested and four others killed in a series of raids.”In part of this operation, in London, the British police found boxes and boxes of South African passports in the home of one of these people, or an associate of these people, which says to me there must be a link that people are able to acquire these documents,” Selebi told parliament’s safety and security committee Wednesday.Selebi did not elaborate and his office declined to give details.The director of the Institute for Security Studies at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, Mike Hough, said it was highly unlikely that al Qaeda would have wanted to disrupt elections in South Africa.”If you think of the South African government’s fierce resistance against a war in Iraq and its sympathy with the Palestinians …then an al Qaeda plot against elections in South Africa sounds a bit far-fetched,” Hough told AFP.However, it was likely that some al Qaeda members were based here.”Al Qaeda has decentralised tremendously since its headquarters in Afghanistan were attacked.There have been fears from the United States that al Qaeda cells might re-establish themselves in Africa.”In terms of the global threat of terror the Americans did ask South Africa to be on the look-out for al Qaeda,” Hough said.But if the government had real evidence against the suspects it would probably have arrested and tried them in South Africa before extraditing them.”It sounds like there was not enough evidence against them and that is why they were deported immediately.”South Africa held peaceful elections on April 14, which returned the ruling African National Congress to power and saw President Thabo Mbeki elected to a second five-year term.The reports of al Qaeda activity in South Africa came as US Attorney General John Ashcroft warned that Osama bin Laden’s network was poised to stage a new attack on the United States.- Nampa-AFP