Investigators in Casablanca near conclusion of al-Qaeda link to bombings
Investigators weighing evidence in Casablanca’s suicide bombings seemed to be nearing the conclusion that the al-Qaeda network was behind the attacks that left 41 people dead. The five nearly simultaneous attacks Friday evening on Jewish targets and areas frequented by foreigners bore the hallmarks of Osama bin Laden’s organization, but officials said Sunday it was “premature” to confirm the link. Indications pointed to the work of an “international network,” Communication Minister Nabil Benabdellah told AFP, with eight of the suicide bombers so far identified with the help of an accomplice who survived the rampage and is cooperating with the probe. The attacks came amid warnings that al-Qaeda was planning fresh strikes in the wake of the US-led war on Iraq. All the assailants were Moroccan, but many had only recently returned to the country from abroad, Benabdellah said, without naming the foreign state. Full Story