SPAIN: Morocco has warned Spain that it has lost track of 400 Moroccan Islamist militants who trained in al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan, Bosnia or Chechnya, the Spanish newspaper El Pais reported yesterday.
Moroccan authorities gave the warning to Judge Baltasar Garzon, Spain's leading al-Qaeda expert, in Rabat earlier this month, El Pais said, citing a person who was present at the meeting.
Spanish Interior Minister Mr Jose Antonio Alonso, asked about the report, neither confirmed nor denied it, but said Spain and Morocco were co-operating closely in the fight against al-Qaeda, and there was a constant flow of information between them.
Spain and Morocco have worked together on the investigation into the March 11th train bombings that killed 191 people and injured 1,900 in Madrid.
Investigators blame the attacks on Islamist militants acting in the name of al-Qaeda, and a Spanish judge has formally accused 24 people of involvement, most of whom are Moroccan.
Authorities in Rabat told Judge Garzon they knew of 600 Moroccan nationals who had trained at al-Qaeda camps, but only knew the whereabouts of 200 of them, El Pais said. Judge Garzon has been investigating suspected al-Qaeda cells in Spain for years, and has ordered 15 suspected members of the network to face trial.