Report: Foreigners Seen in North African Terror Group's Video

The former "doctor" of a North African militant Islamist group affiliated with al Qaeda appeared giving medical instructions in a video seen by the Algerian al Chorouq newspaper. The al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) video shows a "medical clinic" in a cave in the desert, where "the doctor" is seen taking one man's blood pressure and talking about how to help the injured. A number of the group's members also appear in the video, including some foreigners, remarks the paper. Al Chorouq notes that the video had been recorded a while ago, since the man, who was identified as "Dr. Abdul Aziz Abul Qa'qa," died a few months ago. The tape proves that the group has no access to any hospitals in the main tribal area after its bases were destroyed by Algerian forces, says the paper.

AQIM was created out of the Algerian militant group the Salafist Group for Call and Combat (GSPC), which joined al Qaeda and changed its name in Sept 2006. AQIM has claimed responsibility for numerous attacks and kidnappings in North Africa, including the April and Dec 2007 bombings in Algiers, which killed dozens.
(read the article in Arabic>)