At least 42 dead in Nigeria extremist attacks, authorities say

Published May 07, 2013

Associated Press

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria –  Authorities in northeast Nigeria say at least 42 people have been killed in a coordinated attacks by Islamic extremists that also allowed 105 prisoners to escape.

The violence occurred Tuesday in multiple locations in Bama, a town repeatedly hit by fighters in Nigeria's Borno state. Authorities say extremists used multiple heavy machine guns and "anti-aircraft" weapons.

Lt. Col. Sagir Musa told The Associated Press that two soldiers died in one attack, as did 14 Nigerian prison guards when the militants raided a federal prison there. Musa said 105 inmates escaped during the assault.

Bama police commander Alhaji Sagiru said 22 police officers also died in the attacks, as did three children and a woman.

The fighting comes amid increasingly bloody guerrilla attacks by Islamic extremists in northern Nigeria.

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Morocco premier warns Prophet attacks unacceptable

Published April 28, 2013

Associated Press

RABAT, Morocco –  Morocco's Islamist prime minister says it's unacceptable to criticize the Prophet Muhammad, entering a war of words between a secular activist and hardline Salafists that has strained the balance between freedom of expression and religious sensitivities.

Prime Minister Abdelilah Benkirane took a not-so-veiled swipe at secular activist Ahmed Assid at a party rally late Saturday in Rabat. While not mentioning Assid by name, Benkirane said respect must be given to the overwhelmingly Muslim country's values.

Assid has drawn fire for saying a Moroccan school textbook has implied that Islam could be imposed by force.

At least one Salafist leader retorted that Assid was trying to paint Muhammad as a terrorist — a claim Assid denies — and called Assid an "unbeliever," which could be seen as an incitement to violence.

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Mexico nabs 21 in newspaper, politician attacks

GOMEZ PALACIO, Mexico –  Mexican police have detained 21 alleged members of a drug gang linked to the Sinaloa cartel in connection with as many as 30 killings and the abduction of five non-editorial employees of a newspaper who were later released.

Prosecutors in the northern state of Durango say the kidnap-killing of a local politician was among the crimes charged.

A Thursday statement from the state prosecutor's office says the suspects included at least six females who were arrested in the northern city of Gomez Palacio and surrounding areas.

Police say they recovered 20 rifles and bags of drugs in making the 21 arrests.

State Attorney General Sonia de la Garza says the gang dealt drugs, but also acted as an enforcement wing for the Sinaloa cartel led by Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

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Suicide bomber attacks Afghan army bus; 7 wounded

KABUL, Afghanistan –  A suicide bomber attacked a bus carrying Afghan soldiers to work in the capital early Wednesday, wounding seven people in an explosion that engulfed the undercarriage of the bus in flames, officials and witnesses said.

The attack comes three days after a would-be car bomber was shot dead by police in downtown Kabul. That assailant was driving a vehicle packed with explosives and officials said he appeared to be targeting an intelligence agency office nearby.

Wednesday's attacker was on foot. He wore a black overcoat and carried an umbrella as he crossed the snowy street toward the bus, said Ahmad Shakib, who was waiting on the opposite side of the street for a car from his office to take him in to work. The Afghan government uses buses to ferry soldiers, police and office workers into the center city for work every day. These vehicles, which run regular routes, have been a common target for insurgents.

The attacker set down his umbrella in the middle of the road as he approached the bus, then lay down next to the bus and pushed himself underneath, Shakib said.

"I thought to myself, 'What is this crazy man doing? And then there was a blast and flames,'" Shakib said.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attack in a text message to The Associated Press.

The early morning blast in western Kabul wounded six soldiers and one civilian, the Kabul police chief's office said in a statement. Spokesmen for the Defense Ministry and the Interior Ministry said no one was killed in the blast.

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Suicide bomber attacks Afghan army bus; 7 wounded

KABUL, Afghanistan –  A suicide bomber attacked a bus carrying Afghan soldiers to work in the capital early Wednesday, wounding seven people in an explosion that engulfed the undercarriage of the bus in flames, officials and witnesses said.

The attack comes three days after a would-be car bomber was shot dead by police in downtown Kabul. That assailant was driving a vehicle packed with explosives and officials said he appeared to be targeting an intelligence agency office nearby.

Wednesday's attacker was on foot. He wore a black overcoat and carried an umbrella as he crossed the snowy street toward the bus, said Ahmad Shakib, who was waiting on the opposite side of the street for a car from his office to take him in to work. The Afghan government uses buses to ferry soldiers, police and office workers into the center city for work every day. These vehicles, which run regular routes, have been a common target for insurgents.

The attacker set down his umbrella in the middle of the road as he approached the bus, then lay down next to the bus and pushed himself underneath, Shakib said.

"I thought to myself, 'What is this crazy man doing? And then there was a blast and flames,'" Shakib said.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attack in a text message to The Associated Press.

The early morning blast in western Kabul wounded six soldiers and one civilian, the Kabul police chief's office said in a statement. Spokesmen for the Defense Ministry and the Interior Ministry said no one was killed in the blast.

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