More jihad in North Africa. By John Thorne for Associated Press:
RABAT, Morocco – Two suicide bombers blew themselves up Saturday in Casablanca near an American cultural center, just days after three suicide attacks stoked new fears of terrorism in this North African kingdom, an official said.
The Interior Ministry official said one woman was injured in the attacks.
The bombers killed themselves on a boulevard that runs behind an American cultural center, the official said. The American Consulate and a synagogue are also both in the neighborhood. The bombers were not being pursued by police, said the official. He spoke
on condition of anonymity, citing ministry policy.
Three suicide bombers also blew themselves up Tuesday in the city, Morocco’s largest. Just a day later, 33 people were killed and more than 200 injured in al-Qaida-claimed suicide car bombings in neighboring Algeria that targeted the prime minister’s office and a police station.
The U.S. Embassy warned of possible new attacks in the Algerian capital on Saturday. In a statement, it said new attacks could hit near the Algiers central post office and the ENTV national television headquarters. It did not cite a source for its unconfirmed information.
In Morocco, the official news agency, MAP, said the bombers blew themselves up near a bank on the Moulay Youssef Avenue. The American consulate is on that same street. MAP said the bystander suffered light injuries.
MAP quoted an unnamed police source as saying that the bombers were driven by “despair” “” because of police forces’ efforts to break up terrorist cells and successes of recent weeks.
Tuesday’s three bombers blew themselves up after police cornered them. A police sniper shot and killed a fourth man who authorities said appeared to be preparing to detonate explosives.
Moroccan Interior Minister Chakib Benmoussa had said Wednesday that police were still seeking three or four members of Tuesday’s group.