Al-Qaida is due to attack member states of the European Union, the union's new counter-terrorism chief told the European Parliament.

Gilles de Kerchove told the body in Brussels Monday he has studied intelligence from various countries since being appointed to the post in September, Deutsche Welle reported Tuesday.

"An attack perpetrated by local or international networks remains likely," de Kerchove said.

He said the fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq had led to a "radicalization of extremists in Europe," where homegrown converts to Islam were growing as a threat, the report said.

The report said some EU member states regard growing Islamic extremism in North Africa as a problem, heightened by events during the weekend when al-Qaida's second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri called for a holy war against the leaders of Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco because of their support for the U.S.-led war on terror.  // Copyright 2007 by United Press International



Publication date: 06 November 2007   

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