Reuters: World News: France opens probe after raids on Islamist radicals

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France opens probe after raids on Islamist radicals Apr 3rd 2012, 10:55 Tweet Share this Email Print Related News France deports Islamist militants, imams amid crackdown Mon, Apr 2 2012 France arrests suspected Islamic militants Fri, Mar 30 2012 French gunman buried in Toulouse after Algeria rejects body Thu, Mar 29 2012 French gunman's brother suspected of complicity Sun, Mar 25 2012 French gunman's brother quizzed at Paris intelligence HQ Sat, Mar 24 2012 Analysis & Opinion In Gupta case, U.S. must disclose Blankfein deposition prep Sarkozy bars Qaradawi from France, says radical imams unwanted after Toulouse 1 of 2. Paris prosecutor Francois Molins speaks during a news conference in Paris April 3, 2012. Credit: Reuters/Gonzalo Fuentes PARIS | Tue Apr 3, 2012 6:55am EDT PARIS (Reuters) - Thirteen members of a radical Islamist group arrested in police raids last week are being put under investigation on suspicion of terrorist activities, a public prosecutor said on Tuesday. Nine of them will be held in custody during the inquiry, Paris prosecutor Francois Molins told a news conference, adding that the suspects had at one time discussed the possibility of kidnapping a judge in the city of Lyon. Those under inquiry were among 19 arrested in swoops across several cities on March 30, a week after police killed Mohamed Merah, an al Qaeda-inspired gunman who shot dead seven people, including three Jewish children, in three separate attacks. The killings turned internal security into a bigger campaign issue ahead of the April 22 opening round of a vote in which President Nicolas Sarkozy is seeking a second term but trails in the opinion polls behind Socialist rival Francois Hollande. Prosecutor Molins said those placed under investigation on Tuesday were suspected of belonging to Forsane Alizza, a recently outlawed group that came to prominence after calling in 2010 for a boycott of a McDonald's outlet, accusing the U.S. fast food chain of serving Israel. Forsane Alliza's leader, Mohamed Achamlane, was among those put under investigation after raids in which police found a range of weapons including Kalashnikov assault rifles. "Let me tell you firstly that there is no link between this affair and the Merah affair," said Molins. The Forsane Alizza raids were prompted by police work begun last year, he said. Sarkozy nonetheless drew a link between the two affairs during a television interview on Tuesday in which he vowed to root out any form of militancy following Merah's killing spree. "We've decided it's zero tolerance," he said on Canal+ TV. (Reporting by Brian Love and John Irish; Editing by Alistair Lyon) Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (0) Be the first to comment on reuters.com. Add yours using the box above.

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