Reuters AlertNet Lite - Morocco says bomber was in main Islamic group

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Morocco says bomber was in main Islamic group

17 Aug 2007 18:45:50 GMT
Source: Reuters

RABAT, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Moroccan police said on Friday a man who tried unsuccessfully to blow up a bus carrying tourists earlier this week had been a member of the country's main Islamic opposition group.

"Hicham Doukali, who blew himself up last Monday in Meknes some metres (yards) from a bus of tourists, joined al Adl wa al Ihsane as a member in 1998," police said in a statement quoted by the official MAP news agency.

Al Adl wa al Ihsane is Morocco's largest opposition group, with around 200,000 members. The government tolerates it but does not recognise it as a legal party because it challenges the king's role and would like to curb his extensive powers.

The police statement did not say whether 30-year-old Doukali, who studied civil engineering before joining the government tax office in Meknes, 130 km (80 miles) from the capital Rabat, was still an Adl member when he detonated the gas cylinder he was carrying on Monday.

Adl denied that Doukali was one of its activists. But it said more young Moroccans would follow his path if the authorities failed to tolerate moderate Islamists like those of Adl, who are against violence but seek broad reforms.

The explosion of the cylinder, stuffed with explosives, tore Doukali's left hand and badly wounded him in the chest. He survived, and was still in a Rabat hospital under police surveillance, police sources said.

No one else was hurt in the attempted suicide attack in Meknes, one of Morocco's main tourist attractions.

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Last updated:Fri Aug 17 18:47:07 2007