France arrests imam in Chechnya probe

Published: 12 January 2004 y., Monday
Anti-terrorist officers from the DST domestic security service swooped on the suspects in dawn raids in the Venissieux suburb of Lyon on Tuesday. Chellali Benchellali, the imam of Venissieux mosque, was detained along with his wife Hafsa and one of their sons, Hafed, as well as up to five others. "(The arrests) will act as a brake on all these networks and this radical and political Islam which is doing so much harm in our suburbs," Venissieux mayor Andre Gerin, a communist, said. Another of the imam's sons, Mourad Benchellali, was previously arrested by US forces in Afghanistan and is being held at the US military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Around 10 people, mostly of Algerian origin, are already in detention as part of the Chechnya-related investigation launched by French magistrates in December 2002. Among the 10 is another of Chellali Benchellali's sons, Menad.
Šaltinis: english.aljazeera.net
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.

Facebook Comments

New comment


Captcha

Associated articles

The most popular articles

Sydney cleans up after red storm

The Sydney skyline cleared Thursday, after an enormous dust storm clouded the city under a red hue a day earlier. Sydney residents began cleaning their city after a huge outback dust storm blew tones of soil into the city. more »

European language fest

European day of languages is a celebration of the many languages spoken in the EU. more »

Fancy working abroad?

Job fairs pitch benefits of working abroad in the EU. more »

A Climate Smart Future

The world’s poor will bear the brunt of the impact of global climate change. more »

European Heritage Days gives access for scores of people across Europe

The European Heritage Days – supported by the European Commission – will once again attract around 20 million people in 49 countries to visit selected sites and monuments. more »

Tourists hurt in bear attack

An Asian black bear attacked a group of tourists waiting at this bus station in a mountainous region of central Japan. more »

Couples wed in mass ceremony

One hundred and sixty-eight couples line up to say “I Do.” The mass wedding ceremony took place at Singapore's Botanic Gardens to mark the attraction's 150th anniversary. more »

European Day of Languages' celebrations

The Commission celebrates this year's European Day of Languages, 26 September, for almost a week. more »

Europa site gets makeover

New navigation and layout make it easier to find what you’re looking for on the EU site’s main pages – in any official EU language. more »

Ambitious plan receives Baltic Sea Award

The Helsinki Commission, Helcom, receives the Swedish Baltic Sea Water Award 2009. more »