A statement in the name of a group that claimed responsibility for the London bombings threatened to launch ”a bloody war” on the capitals of European countries that do not remove their troops from Iraq within a month.
”This is the last message we send to the European countries. We are giving you one month for your soldiers to leave the Land of the Two Rivers. Then there will be no other messages, but actions, and the words will be engraved in the heart of Europe,” Abu Hafs al Masri Brigades said on Tuesday in a statement.
The ”two rivers” in the statement refer to Iraq’s Euphrates and Tigris rivers.
The authenticity of the statement — which surfaced on an Islamic website known as a clearing house for extremist groups’ material — could not be verified.
A United States official said there is some mystery that surrounds the group, which has no proven track record of attacks.
Experts are skeptical of its statements. The organisation has claimed responsibility for events in which it clearly did not play any role, such as the 2003 blackouts in the United States and London that resulted from technical problems.
But, the US official said, there is a school of thought that the name may apply to an umbrella organisation for a loose group of terrorists that take actions in the name of al-Masri — one alias of Mohammed Atef, Osama bin Laden’s top deputy who was killed in a US airstrike in Afghanistan in November 2001.
While loosely defined, the group is thought to have a presence in Europe, said the official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the information’s sensitive nature.
It is not the first time this group has threatened European nations. In recent months it said its operatives would strike in Europe if European nations did not withdraw their troops from Afghanistan and Iraq.
”It is time for you to understand that the Mujahedeen [holy warriors] will not leave their nation suffering under the stigma of humiliation and the killings by American fire which you allied with,” the statement said.
It vowed to launch ”a bloody war, God willing”, against Denmark, Holland, Britain, Italy and other countries ”whose soldiers are roving and having fun in Iraq”.
The group was one of at least two to claim responsibility for the July 7 bombings that killed 56 people on London’s underground and a double-decker bus.
”We promise you that these will be the last words”, the statement said. ”After that, our Mujahedeen will say something else in your capitals.”
‘Everything possible’ done to protect Britain
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said on Wednesday that he was satisfied Britain’s security services did ”everything that is possible” to protect the country before the London bombings.
The comments, during the prime minister’s weekly question and answer session in Parliament, came after a report said Britain lowered its threat assessment level as a result of a confidential intelligence report.
The intelligence findings had concluded there was no group with the intent or capability to attack the country three weeks before the attacks.
”I am satisfied that they do everything that is possible in order to protect our country,” Blair said.
Govt plans to ‘monitor’ Muslims
Meanwhile, the British government plans to set up special intelligence units across the country to monitor Muslims and allow authorities build a ”community by community” picture of where extremism is developing, The Guardian newspaper reported on Wednesday.
Special squads, to be known as Muslim Contact Units, will be staffed by intelligence officers and established in areas with a high Muslim population including Yorkshire, north-west England and parts of the Midlands, the report said.
After the London bombings, police have admitted their intelligence of what goes on in Muslim communities is ”low” and urgently needs to be boosted, said the newspaper.
The police and British Home Office say that a Muslim Contact Unit already operating in London had helped thwart extremist attempts to recruit young British Muslims, by working with Islamic communities.
The establishment of the special units nationwide was one of the first concrete, counter-terrorist measure to emerge after the London bombings.
The units will have people with language skills and seek detailed knowledge of the ”dynamic of Islamic communities in their areas”, said The Guardian.
Their role would be to help protect Muslim communities from Islamophobic abuse and attacks, while also gathering information on extremist activity.
The government announced plans to set up a joint taskforce to map out measures to tackle extremism and its roots after talks with Muslim community leaders on Tuesday. – Sapa-DPA, Sapa-AFP