DAR AL HARB - E.U.: AL QUEDA PUTTING DOWN NEW ROOTS IN EURABIA

EU: Al Qaida cells from North Africa putting down roots throughout Europe

LONDON — European Union officials said Al Qaida operatives from North Africa have established networks in France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands.

Operatives from South Asia have established cells in Britain and Switzerland.

"Switzerland serves Islamic-motivated terrorism as a place for retreat, preparation, logistics and propaganda," the Swiss Federal Police Office said in a report on May 31.

"Islamists, who are being prosecuted in the EU or who have served a prison sentence, seem to be choosing Switzerland as an alternative place to stay."

In April, the European Police Organization issued a report warning of an emerging Al Qaida threat to the continent. In its first report, "EU Terrorism Situation and Trend Report 2007," Europol, based in The Hague, said Islamic insurgency cells pose a greater threat than ever to European security.

The 39-page report, measuring attacks and arrests, determined that Britain, France and Spain were the most threatened by Al Qaida and its allies. Europol reported nearly 500 terrorist attacks in 27 EU nations in 2006, the vast majority in France and Spain.

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