In the Eye of the Storm: Morocco, Belgium and Some Busy Little Bees

A 2004 survey of Moroccans reported that 8% had a ‘favourable’ or ‘very favourable’ image of President Bush, but the comparable figure for bin laden was 45%

So what turns the otherwise moderate and reasonable North African into such a restless, divided creature? The Palestine issue. These people have little displeasure with either America or the American people. Their dissatisfaction is not with the West’s fundamental democratic beliefs, but with foreign policy. What makes the profile of the United States so overwhelmingly negative in these parts is its unconditional support for Israel in the Occupied Territories and for its gratuitous gutting of Iraq. Ussama Makdisi, a Professor of History at Rice University writes:

”on no issue is Arab anger at the United States more widely and acutely felt than that of Palestine …. For it is over Palestine that otherwise antithetical Arab and Islamist interpretations of history converge in their common perception of an immense gulf separating official American avowals of support for freedom from actual American Policies” - Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy, Mearsheimer & Walt, 2007

The Los Angeles Times only this year wrote, “Morocco finds itself in the eye of a storm radiating across Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.”

Between 2003 and 2007 Moroccan resentment finally erupted in a series of bombings that took place in Casablanca, the country’s largest city. The attacks were the worst in Morocco’s relatively peaceful history. Such was the urgency of the threat that in July 2007, Moroccan Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa took the astonishing measure of raising the terrorist alert level for Morocco to maximum. The previous 12 months had witnessed a progressive increase in the number of political statements and terrorist plots targeting Morocco. The most recent group to publicly declare its discontent and issue a declaration of jihad against the government of King Mohammed VI was the newly constituted "Ansar al-Islam in the Muslim Desert, the Land of the Veiled Men"

The Interior Ministry responded by ordering security services to undertake a ‘total mobilization’ and indicated that the current level of deployed security forces would be doubled.

This must have been small consolation to the West as Morocco had generally been regarded as Europe’s gateway to the East and was notorious for the number of transients and migrants drifting across its borders. As a gateway it was largely unmanned. Were Morocco’s own intelligence services likely to be sufficient in the face of such an unprecedented threat? What guarantees did we have that such a threat could be disabled and contained?

Israel and the West’s concern was no doubt compounded by the suicide bombers’ choice of targets, which had, in the 2003 Casablanca bombings at least, covered a range of civilian locations: a five star hotel, a Jewish Cemetery, a Jewish community centre, a Jewish-owned Italian restaurant and a Belgian Consulate.

In all, 12 bombers died, along with 33 civilians. Two bombers were arrested before they could carry out attacks.

More than 100 people were injured. Eight of the dead were Europeans (three Spanish among them) and the rest were Moroccan. Somewhat predictably, the suicide bombers themselves came from the poor suburbs and shantytowns of Casablanca.

By contrast, the attacks in 2007 were much less of a triumph; the bombers thwarted in their attempts either to detonate the charges successfully or forced to detonate them too early.

According to Assabah newspaper the real target had been Casablanca's police and paramilitary headquarters – but it seems inevitable that their plans would have included at least a handful of anti-Semitic strikes given the focus of earlier efforts and the bombing of Lebanon the previous summer (the remaining targets were dismissed by the press as ‘tourist locations’, perhaps understandably)

At this point I would like to remind you of a sadly forgotten event in Israel’s long and turbulent history: the Lavon Affair.

When people ask me if I believe it is possible for a country’s security and intelligence services to stage-manage an event aimed at precipitating a series of responses from another country or for creating a moral pretext for some policy or other, I tend to remind them of the Lavon Affair.

I’ll let Wikipedia take up the issue:

”The Lavon Affair refers to the scandal over a failed Israeli covert operation in Egypt known as Operation Susannah, in which Israeli military intelligence planted bombs in Egyptian, American and British-owned targets in Egypt in the summer of 1954. It became known as the Lavon Affair after the Israeli defense minister Pinhas Lavon, who was forced to resign because of the incident, or euphemistically as the Unfortunate Affair. Israel admitted responsibility in 2005 when Israeli President Moshe Katzav honored the nine Egyptian Jewish agents who were involved." - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavon_Affair

The purpose of the mission was to sow discord between America and Egypt; a covert operation in which a series of bombings would be blamed on Egyptian Nationalists and unite the US, Israel and Britain in a common struggle against militant extremism and a weak and unpredictable regime in Egypt. The plot had been hatched by Israel’s Minister of Defence, Pinhas Lavon (a dedicated Zionist) and was conceived in response to the growing friendship between President Gamal Abdul Nassar of Egypt and President Dwight D. Eisenhower (in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Egypt had taken control of the Gaza Strip).

How was a new and fledgling Israeli power able to establish roots in a territory fought over almost daily by warring Arab Nations? By enlisting the cooperation and resources of a power greater than all of them.

So naturally, when a renewed threat of aggression appears from unexpected quarters, efforts must be maintained to apply pressure. The problem for Israel and the West in such circumstances is in obtaining reliable intelligence without jeopardising exisiting relations, especially from a country that has until that point, at least, been considered a cooperative, if volatile ally. Whilst it is true that Israel and Morocco had never enjoyed full diplomatic relations, they had (at least until the death of King Hassan in ’99) benefited from a mutually supportive dialogue.

One solution is to get a team of experts into the country to assess the situation, which was indeed carried out in April of this year:

” A delegation of American CIA and FBI agents were in Morocco to examine the terrorist network of Belgian-Moroccan terrorist and informant Abdelkader Belliraj. US interest in Belliraj is based on a connection between him and al-Qaeda and Hezbollah. Meanwhile, the Belgian police delegation has returned from Morocco and convinced of Belliraj’s significance in the network, and may be responsible for more incidents of terrorism than initially presumed.” (De Morgen, April 2008)

The renewed interest was as a result of the arrests in Morocco of a group of 35 terrorists suspects in February 2008. Nothing perhaps shocking in itself, but shocking when one learned that the 35 suspects were not this time underprivileged and over-radicalised young boys from the shantytowns of the poorer suburbs but a network that consisted of politicians and businessmen, bureaucrats and pharmacists, a police commander and a TV journalist.

The alleged leader of the group, 51-year old, Abdelkader Belliraj was a well-off Moroccan immigrant living in Belgium who had financed his activities through a combination of multimillion-dollar robberies and political assassinations in a career spanning decades (he was also alleged to have been an informant for the Belgian State Security Services and for several other intelligence agencies, including France's DGSE and the CIA). Morocco’s Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa said in an interview that the group plotted to assassinate Cabinet ministers, military chiefs and Jewish leaders in an effort to ‘destabilize this moderate Muslim nation’. He also alleged that in 2001 Belliraj and several of his followers travelled to Afghanistan to receive orders from al-Qaeda second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri. His followers trained subsequently in al-Qaeda camps alongside militants belonging to the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group, another al-Qaeda linked Moroccan militant group. That same group would eventually carry out the series of bombings in 2003 and play a role in the Madrid train bombings in 2004.

Again, somewhat predictably, the network headed by Belliraj in 2008, had long established links to Shiite Muslim movements, including Hezbollah – Israel’s longtime rival.

Other news agencies reported the incident:

” Belgium-based Moroccan behind dismantled terror network
28 May 2008, by News Agencies

Anti-terrorism police in Morocco and Belgium have detained 11 suspects with alleged links to both Belgium and Al-Qaeda offshoots in Northern Africa. Authorities say that members of the group may have plotted attacks on a luxury hotel in Brussels and European Union facilities.”

By coincidence, Oakley International, the US-based private investigators which boasts former CIA, FBI and Mi5 personnel, was hired to conduct surveillance activity on a paedophile network in Belgium during this same period. The company had been hired by Kate and Gerry McCann in their efforts to find their daughter. It was, however, not the first time the two operations had crossed paths, the couple’s private investigations similarly taking them to Morocco and across the path of convicted Dutch terrorist, Eef Hoos (owner of a pet crematorium in Portugal) and one time 'Al Capone of the Hague'.

When confronted with the information, a spokesman for the Belgian Federal Police dismissed their claims:

’We are not aware of the existence of a paedophile network, especially one with the characteristics claimed by the British media.’ - http://sosmaddie.dhblogs.be/

So if they weren't chasing paedos in Belgium, who the bloody hell were they chasing?

Of course, cross-border cooperation amongst all these countries may be one way of addressing the movement of terrorist cells and paedophile networks, but how do we impose our will in countries that are not a part of the European Union and have no intention of signing this agreement? How do we guarantee their commitment to solving the problem?

It was obviously a concern of Portugal, because in July this year, Morocco and Portugal pledged to diversify bilateral relations and implement ‘enduring and mutually-beneficial bilateral cooperation’ in order to take up such challenges.

Additionally, Morocco and Portugal called for the revival of the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA – a regional grouping that includes Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, and Libya) deeming it "a necessity in the current geo-strategic context" as this would bring "more stability and security" according to a joint statement made by Moroccan premier, Abbas El Fassi and Portugal's José Socrates.

As a sign of good will, a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ was signed by the two countries to double Portugal's credit line to Morocco to 400 million Euros with a view to implementing infrastructure projects in Morocco.

Later that same month, Morocco signed a second Memorandum of Understanding, this time with the European Commission. The Memorandum, presided over by President José Barroso, proposed to establish foundations for ‘a sustainable exchange of statistical data between Morocco and Eurostat’. The agreement, signed within the context of the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) gave priority to the following sectors: Agriculture, Energy, Environment, External Trade & Balance of Payments, National Accounts, Social, Transport and Tourism. In light of developments in Casablanca and Brussels, however, one might speculate that the remit of this ‘statistical cooperation’ might be extended to security and justice matters.

Not unsurprisingly, the first ‘Mediterranean’ country to sign such a Memorandum was Israel.

A development perhaps equally as significant, is Morocco's decision to Exchange of Letters in respect of NATO’s Operation Active Endeavour, an operation which evolved out of NATO’s immediate response to 9/11. Under Operation Active Endeavour, NATO ships have been deployed to patrol the Mediterranean, monitoring shipping and providing escorts to non-military vessels through the Straits of Gibraltar to help detect, deter and protect against terrorist activity, drugs trafficking, irregular migration and the black market trafficking of goods. However, in order to extend the control of these lines in the Mediterranean, NATO requires the cooperation of non-NATO nations. At a ceremony that took place in June 2008 in Brussels an Exchange of Letters was recorded between NATO and Morocco, a clear indication that Morocco was keen to commit its support to the operation. Georgia similarly exchanged letters in March 2008. Both Israel and Morocco have, moreover, expressed an interest in participating more formally in an OEA. So far they are only ‘Mediterranean Dialogue’ countries to do so.

To set in motion a much sought after sequence of events and concessions – all you need is a suitable catalyst. Israel knows that. America knows that. Britain knows that. Even the McCanns know that. Fomenting diplomatic relationships with meetings, delegations and formal investigations is one thing, but nothing can replace the quiet application of covert forces to achieve results.

Who said there no short-cuts through bureaucracy?

*****

Updates

• Another Belgian-Moroccan man, Abdallah Ait-Oud, was reecently convicted of the murder of Belgian schoolgirls, Nathalie Mahy and Stacy Lemmens in June 2006. The case was reprised in June 2007 when an anonymous note was posted to De Telegraaf newspaper alleging to know the location of the body of Madeleine McCann. It was linked to a similar note that sucessfully identified the final resting place of Nathalie and Stacy.
  
  
• There are reported to have been over 100 alleged sightings of Madeleine McCann in Belgium and dozens in Morocco.
  
  
• One of the resolutions of the controversial Prum Treaty (incorporated into the EU's legal framework in 2007) was to address the field of cross-border cooperation, with particular emphasis given to the fight against terrorism, cross-border crime and illegal migration. Morocco and Algeria came under particular scrutiny - not least because oftheir increasing association with al-Queda networks.
  
  
• The French Presidency recently addressed the council of the European Union on the issue of Morocco, and made the following statement regarding its intention to advance its status:
  
  "Taking into account the characteristics of the partner countries, the French Presidency intends to bring about the completion of the work in progress to define an advanced status for Morocco as regards the European Union, which could function as a benchmark for other countries in the region. The objective of strengthening relations with Israel, which the Presidency will pursue in keeping with the outcome of the Association Council of 16 June, will have to take into account developments in the situation in the Middle East with a view to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."
  
  http://www.ue2008.fr
  
  
• David James Smith of The Times alleges that the Portuguese Police were surprised at the inclusion of Mi5 members at UK Meeting Team - 'Kate & Gerry: Beyond The Smears'
  
  
• It was generally agreed that the McCanns had wasted 'an astonishing amount of money' raised by public donations by looking for their missing daughter in Morocco. Barcelona-based agency Metodo 3 invested huge sums in teams checking out reported sightings of Madeleine in the Rif mountains of northern Morocco. The McCanns were to waste a further £500,000 of their fund, when Oakland International focused their efforts on smashing a paedophile ring in Belgium. The Belgian Police said they had no knowledge of any such network operating in their country.
  
  
• Gerry McCann was to meet a broad cross-section of Interior and Justice Ministers during his 'fact-finding missions' last June and July. So far his missions have yielded private meetings with Wolfgang Schauble (German Interior Minister responsible for reviving the Prum Treaty and co-hosting the 'First Europa Forum on the Rights of the Child' with the EU's Justice Minister, Franco Frattini), Alberto Gonzales (Minister of Justice and US Attorney General), the UK's Junior Justice Minister, Baroness Ashton, Germany's Deputy Justice Minister, Lutz Diwell. In June 2007, during their visit to Morocco the couple tried to apply pressure on the country's Interior and Justice Minister, Chakib Benmoussa and other top security officials. At a time when media interest reached its height in light of the 'Bushra' photo, Chakib Benmoussa went on record as saying that there was 'no evidence' that Madeleine was in Morocco. In addition to presiding over court and criminal issues, the Justice Minister is variously responsible for Homeland Security and the Prevention of Terrorism. I wonder how much pressure the McCann Lobby tried to apply on Portuguese Justice Minister, Alberto Costa?
  
  
• The issue of 'renewable energies' was one of the first things tabled for discussion at a meeting to diversigy relations between Portugal and Morocco as part of the two countries' Memorandum of Understanding. Small wonder to learn that Alexander Ellis was recently appointed British Ambassador in Portugal given his previous experience as advisor to President Barroso of the European Commission on Energy matters. The upshot of sharing statistical data on issues of security and criminal justice is that it opens the way for greater economic freedom too.

• The series of bombings in Morocco in May 2003 came just four days after a similar attack in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on May 12th 2003. The attack - which the US and the Saudis blamed on al-Qaeda - centred on three foreign workers compounds in the Saudi capital. 35 people were killed in the attack and nearly 200 injured. Many of the casualties were American. After the Casablanca bombings four days later, the US Department of Homeland Security raised the terrorist threat level to Orange. The attack on the 12th May took place only hours before a visit to the city by US Secretary of State Colin Powell, who had palnned his trip to Saudi Arabia to discuss a peaceful conclusion to the Israeli-Palestine conflict. After a further bombing in Riyadh in November that year, Dr.Saleh Bin Humaid, the imam of the Grand Mosque in Makkah and chairman of the Shoura Council, made the following statement:
  
  “Are the terrorism of Israel and the terrorism of those (militants) coordinated?” Dr. Humaid asked. “Is the purpose to kill more Arabs and Muslims and create more violence and instability?”
  
  The attack had taken place during Ramadam, Islam's Holy Month.
  
  All attacks are alleged to have been carried out in response to the Invasion of Iraq that had taken place during the previous months (between March and May 2003).
  
  
• The decision to invade had been finalized at the Azores Summit in Portugal, organised and hosted by José Durao Barroso who was, at that time, Portuguese Prime Minister.
  
  The Azores Declaration on Iraq adopted by the leaders meeting at the Lajes base, which is jointly run by the United States and Portugal, said the position taken by Iraqi President Saddam Hussein weakened the authority of the Security Council.
  
  In the European Union, the US secured only the support of Britain, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Denmark for an invasion.
  
  The French DGSE foreign intelligence service warned in a report dated December 19 2006, of a 'wave of attacks in an unidentified European country planned and run from Syria and Iraq'. The period of highest risk was thought to be from September 2006 to April 2007. They indicated that the tip-off came from the American CIA. The plotters were believed to be Western Europeans. American security sources told The Observer that the threat was 'sky high'.
  
  
• A 'revised' treaty on the European Union (the Lisbon Treaty) was finally signed in Lisbon, Portugal on 13th December 2007.
  
  
• "Kate recounted, "I can remember our friends shouting, 'You need to close the borders' and they were shouting 'Morocco, Algiers!' You know I can remember all this going on. 'And roadblock, we need roadblocks!'" But there were no roadblocks, and no borders closed (Kate McCann, 'Madeleine McCann: One Year On', ITV recounting the intitial responses of her friends to the news Madeleine had been 'abducted' . It later transpires that their 'reflex' responses to this news prefigured a number of actual sightings in and around these very countries; the first by Mari Olli in Morocco in May 2007 and the second by Melissa Fiering who claimed to have seen Madeleine at a Cafe in Southern France with an 'Algerian' looking man".
  
  Morocco and Algeria are just two of the seven countries on the 'Mediterranean Dialogue' list and the EU and NATO's Individual Cooperation Programme (The ICP works at promoting political and military ties with the Euro-Atlantic and the Mediterranean regions along with security cooperation with NATO and between NATO and it's Mediterranean Dialogue partners, in order to enhance Mediterranean regional security and stability in a united fight against terrorism). The immediate response of Kate and Gerry's friends was nothing if not topical. Clairvoyant even.
  
  ***

links:
Context of 'May 16, 2003: Suicide Bombings in Casablanca, Morocco, Kill 45'
http://www.historycommons.org/context.jsp?item=a051603casablancaattack

Did Islamist Serial Killer Avert British Terror Attack?
http://www.westernresistance.com/blog/archives/004010.html

http://www.lalibre.be/index.php?view=article&art_id=408228

Migration
http://www.realinstitutoelcano.org/documentos/293.asp

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