Zarqawi A Threat to Europe?
By Daveed Gartenstein-Ross
I just received an interesting Reuters article by Mark Trevelyan which describes the analysis of the head of German foreign intelligence about Zarqawi's network in Europe. An excerpt:
Islamist militants in Europe as well as the Middle East are increasingly identifying with Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al Qaeda's leader in Iraq, and looking to emulate him by carrying out attacks, the head of German foreign intelligence said on Thursday. "We see the Zarqawi network is becoming increasingly active. We also see a growing threat for Europe," said August Hanning, head of Germany's BND intelligence service. . . . Hanning said Zarqawi was increasingly acting as a magnet for militants who admire him as the most effective leader of the Iraq insurgency. The suspected ringleader of the July 7 London suicide bombings, Mohammed Sidique Khan, described Zarqawi as one of "today's heroes" in a statement taped before his death. "There are groups that are attempting to make contact with Zarqawi and take part in his struggle," [Hanning] said, adding it was sometimes hard to distinguish between activity directed by Zarqawi and that carried out by militants trying to associate themselves with him.
In declining to state what European countries faced the greatest risk, Hanning described the continent as "a threat zone with open borders." Europe's situation will be worth following since Zarqawi's network appears to have now successfully struck beyond Iraq's borders.