Out Of Africa: A Growing Threat To Europe From al-Qaeda's New Allies

From The Times Online:

It is a vast expanse of desert where conditions are so inhospitable that almost no one lives there. But for al-Qaeda – on the run in Iraq and under attack in Pakistan and Afghanistan – this stretch of the Algerian Sahara has proved fertile ground in its quest to open a new front on Europe’s southern doorstep.

Intelligence sources and Western diplomats have told The Times that a new force – an Algerian group calling itself al-Qaeda in the Land of Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) – aims to create an arc of influence throughout North Africa by spreading Osama bin Laden’s “brand” through a fusion of disparate fundamentalist groupings.

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My Comment: Since Algeria's War Of Independence, this region of Africa has always been under turmoil and conflict. The players are the same, the only thing different is the name and maybe there targets (i.e. Europe and the U.S.)