By William Tucker
Al-Qaeda's North African node, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, released a new video yesterday showing several hostages, and once again, calling on the French government to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan. The video, which was released on a well known jihadist forum, was simply reiterating the same demands issued by Usama bin Laden some time ago. Prior to the seizure of these hostages in September, the French government had declared war on AQIM after a French citizen was killed by the group one year ago. France has been actively working with several North African governments to combat the al-Qaeda threat by supporting military operations and establishing joint training centers in the region. The continued detainment of French citizens in the midst of the now declared war is certain to put the Sarkozy government to the test as it is engaged in military operations in Libya and continues to support counterterrorism operations across North Africa. AQIM on the other hand has been degraded as of late and may find a reprieve in the Libyan chaos. It is still too early to tell what impact the Libyan situation will have on the future of AQIM, but it is certainly an issue that needs to be watched closely.
Source: http://www.inhomelandsecurity.com/2011/04/aqim_releases_new_video_of_fre.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+InHomelandSecurity+%28In+Homeland+Security%29
