Purported al Qaeda letter calls truce in Spain

9.45am


CAIRO - A group claiming to have links with al Qaeda said on Wednesday it was calling a truce in its Spanish operations to see if the new government would withdraw its troops from Iraq, a pan-Arab newspaper said.

In a statement sent on Wednesday to the Arabic language daily al-Hayat, the Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades, which claimed responsibility for the Madrid bombings that killed 201 people, also urged its European units to stop all operations.

"Because of this decision, the leadership has decided to stop all operations within the Spanish territories... until we know the intentions of the new government that has promised to withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq," the statement said.

"And we repeat this to all the brigades present in European lands: stop all operations."

In a shock election result just days after the Madrid attacks, Spain elected the Socialist party, which has since said it will probably withdraw its troops from Iraq.

The Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades have previously claimed responsibility for bombings in Turkey and Iraq.

"The Spanish people... chose peace by choosing the party that was against the alliance with America," the statement said. The newspaper planned to publish it on Thursday.

Outgoing Spanish Prime Minister Josa Maria Aznar was a staunch ally of the United States in the Iraq war, although a majority of the Spanish people were opposed to sending Spanish troops there.

"Praise be to God who gave us this victory in the conquest of Madrid... where one of the pillars of the axis of Crusader evil was destroyed," the statement said, affirming its earlier claim for the Madrid attacks.

A US official in Washington has previously said the group's link with al Qaeda is unclear.

- REUTERS