Report: Al Qaeda Seeks To Recruit Illegal Immigrants in Europe
Ennahar: The Algerian Ennahar daily quoted European sources as saying that there were a number of signs indicating that al Qaeda is trying to recruit Algerian, Moroccan and African illegal immigrants and ex-cons in Italy, Spain and France in order to use them in suicide attacks throughout Europe.
Ahmed Shalafi, an illegal immigrant working as a bouncer at a night club in Spain, said he was approached by two individuals - a Pakistani and a Bosnian - who tried to talk him into working with them on recruiting members from the Muslim community.
Other sources said that al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb has received direct instructions from al Qaeda's second in command Ayman al Zawahiri to work on recruiting illegal immigrants and cooperate with illegal immigrant traffickers.
European Union Intelligence reports recently warned against potential al Qaeda attacks against U.N. offices and U.S. and Israeli embassies in a number of European capitals this spring. The reports suggested that the organization could shift its operations to Eastern Europe due to the tight security measures already in place in the west, in an attempt to raise the morale of its supporters.