In a videotaped message, a man purporting to speak on behalf of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network claimed Madrid bombings that killed 200 and wounded 1,500, the Spanish interior minister said early Sunday.
The tape - along with the detention of three Moroccans and two Indians - provided the strongest indication yet of an Islamic link to the attack on one of Washington's staunchest allies in Iraq. According to The AP, Spanish officials, however, said they could not confirm the tape's authenticity.
A speaker on the videotape said the bombings were "a response to your collaboration with the criminals Bush and his allies" and threatened more attacks, Interior Minister Angel Acebes said in during a news conference after midnight.
The videotape was discovered in a wastebasket near a Madrid mosque after an Arabic-speaking man called a Madrid TV station and said where it could be located, the interior minister added.
The man on the videotape wore Arabic dress and spoke with a Moroccan accent, Acebes said. The speaker concluded by saying: "This is a statement by the military spokesman for al-Qaeda in Europe, Abu Dujan al Afghani."
Interior Ministry officials said it was unclear whether that meant the man was Abu Dujan al Afghani himself or that he was speaking in his name. Acebes added the name was not known to intelligence bodies, and that they were checking the tape's authenticity.
The speaker threatened further attacks.
"This is a response to the crimes that you caused in the world, and specifically in Iraq and Afghanistan, and there will be more if God wills it," the man said, according to the Spanish government's translation.
On Saturday, five suspects were arrested around Madrid. A spokesman for the Moroccan government identified the three Moroccans as Jamal Zougam, 30; Mohamed Bekkali, 31, a mechanic; and Mohamed Chaoui, 34. All three are from northern Morocco.
"One might have connections with Moroccan extremist groups. But it is still very early to establish to what degree," Acebes said.
Meanwhile, two new corpses of Moroccan nationals have been identified by their families, among the 200 people killed in Madrid blasts, bringing the total number of Moroccans who died in those attacks to three.
The two victims are a 14 year old girl born in Madrid and a 27 year old man from Al Hoceima, located in North East Morocco.
According to MAP, 14 other Moroccan nationals were wounded in these bombings. (Albawaba.com)
© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
