16.07.10 Sahara Focus
Frenchman abducted while on charity trip
The situation is very different south of the Algerian border. On the evening of
21 April, within 24 hours of the much-hyped opening of the joint command
headquarters at Tamanrasset (SF 2010.01) and an Algerian announcement that
there
would be 75,000 troops in the area by 2012, a Frenchman and his Algerian driver
were
kidnapped near Teguidda-n-Tessemt, in northern Niger.
The two men had driven south from Tamanrasset and through the In Guezzam border
post. The Frenchman, Michel Germaneau, aged 78, is retired and wanted to check
on the progress of a school being built at In Abangerit by a charity with which
he is associated. His driver, Abedine Ouaghe (known as Dino), is an Algerian
from
Tamanrasset who works with his brother's tourism agency in Agades.
Niger security sources stated that the two were abducted by Taleb Abdoulkrim's
group, which claims to be part of that Al Qa'ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)
but until now has not been involved in hostage taking. ('Taleb' is the Arabic
word
for an Islamic cleric.)
Abdoulkrim is the leader of the mosque at Inhallil and is allegedly known for
violent sermons advocating the supremacy of Islam. Inhallil is the small Mali
frontier settlement adjoining Bordj Mokhtar and only a short distance north of
Abdelhamid Abou Zaïd's AQIM base in the Tigharghar mountains.
On 6 May, Al Jazeera cited a statement from AQIM that claimed responsibility for
this latest hostage taking. AQIM was reported as saying that 'its members
managed to kidnap engineer Michel Germaneau in the north of Niger on the 22nd
of the
previous month.' The group asked France, and those whom it called its allies in
the region, to release its jailed members.
According to Niger security sources, the abduction was well planned, suggesting
that Abdoulkrim had advance knowledge of his victims' travel plans. Abdoulkrim
is reported to have taken the two hostages back into Mali, with Abedine Ouaghe
being dropped off in the desert and left to find his way to Tin Zaouatene.
He returned home after two days of alleged debriefing by the Algerian
authorities but was then extradited to Niger, where he was wanted in connection
with the
abduction. He is currently reported to be in detention in Niamey.
An article written in El Watan by the pseudonymous Selima Tlemçani, who works closely with the Département du Renseignement et de la sécurité (DRS), confirmed that Abdoulkrim and his group were seen passing Boughessa, heading
in the direction of Inhallil and the Tigharghar Mountains.
For more news and expert analysis about Sahara, please Sahara Focus and Algeria Politics & Security.
© 2010 Menas Associates