Al Qaeda In The Maghreb Claims Algerian Govt. Behind Forest Fires
By
CBS Investigates
/ CBS News
(AQIM)
Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) accused the Algerian government of standing behind the forest fires that broke out in eastern Algeria in the past few weeks. The group said in an Internet statement that it will soon release a video as evidence of the armyʼs implication in the fires. Fires have destroyed more than ten thousand hectares of forest in Algeria within one week. Last year, villagers blamed the army for starting forest fires during their campaign on Islamists on the run in the areas east of the capital Algiers.
