North Africa

[dazzer]

just found this.
Just show's you that even in this part of North Africa you still have to be on your guard.

Maybe it's not such a good Idea me going on my own

anyone want to come with me

http://africa.reuters.com/country/MR...nL2774098.html

 

[Zed Zed]

just found this.
Just show's you that even in this part of North Africa you still have to be on your guard.

Maybe it's not such a good Idea me going on my own

anyone want to come with me

http://africa.reuters.com/country/MR...nL2774098.html

unable to down load wassamarra.............................

 

[John Armstrong]

Got this:

This error (HTTP 404 Not Found) means that Internet Explorer was able to connect to the website, but the page you wanted was not found. It's possible that the webpage is temporarily unavailable. Alternatively, the website might have changed or removed the webpage.

 

[Zed Zed]

so what was the gist of the web page??????????

 

[dazzer]

Three Mauritanian soldiers killed in desert clash
Thu 27 Dec 2007, 18:44 GMT

[-] Text [+] By Ibrahima Sylla

NOUAKCHOTT (Reuters) - Gunmen travelling in two vehicles killed three Mauritanian soldiers on Thursday in a desert clash in the north of the Saharan country, a military official said.

The identity of the gunmen was not immediately known but the clash took place in the same vast northeastern desert region of Mauritania where Islamic militants allied to al Qaeda killed 15 soldiers in a 2005 raid. The region borders Western Sahara to the west, Algeria to the north and Mali to the east.

On Monday suspected Islamic extremists killed four French tourists and wounded a fifth in southern Mauritania in an attack that raised fears al Qaeda-linked militants who have carried out attacks in Algeria and Morocco may be seeking to extend their operations southwards to Mauritania, Senegal and Mali.

Another security official had earlier reported that four soldiers were killed in Thursday's incident near an army position at El Ghallawiya, some 700 km (440 miles) northeast of the capital Nouakchott.

The Mauritanian military official, who asked not to be named, said a unit from the El Ghallawiya army outpost had tried to intercept two vehicles travelling through the desert area, not far from the huge Guelb er Richat crater.

"The fleeing occupants of the cars turned and opened fire on the army vehicle, killing three soldiers and seizing a weapon," the official said. The army was hunting for the attackers.

The killing of the French tourists and the slaying of the soldiers occurred as Mauritanian authorities were preparing to host the high-profile Lisbon-Dakar rally that will start January 5 and cross through Morocco and Mauritania en route to Senegal.

Traffickers of drugs and arms, Tuareg rebels and armed bandits also roam the huge desert wastes of the southern Sahara that extend across the north of Mauritania, Mali and Niger.

Security forces in Mauritania, Senegal and Mali are hunting for the three killers of the French tourists, two of whom are suspected of links with the Algeria-based Islamic militant group formerly known as the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), which is accused of attacks in North Africa.

The GSPC has changed its name to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb after allying itself to mainstream al Qaeda. In September, al Qaeda's second in command urged north African Muslims to "cleanse" their land of Spaniards and French.

Monday's killings shocked the largely desert former French colony that straddles Arab and black Africa. Authorities have been trying to develop a nascent desert tourism industry. (Additional reporting by Diadie Ba; Writing by Pascal Fletcher; Editing by Ibon Villelabeitia)

 

[John Armstrong]

Oops, hope the Dakar guys and galls take care to avoid the nasty people.

 

[Fanum]

just found this.
Just show's you that even in this part of North Africa you still have to be on your guard.

Maybe it's not such a good Idea me going on my own

anyone want to come with me

http://africa.reuters.com/country/MR...nL2774098.html

TBH Dazzer, unless you go well off the path, you're very unlikely to encounter anything like this.

This happened 440 miles away from Noukchott, which is where most people travelling through Mori on there way to proper black Africa will pass through.

The area it occurred in has always been a bit iffy, it's where the Polisario radicals hide out (and I wish their story was better known......say no more) and there are a lot of lawless elements in that area.

We've seen lots of police activity near borders, crossed minefields and have seen guns worn fairly openly on streets, but unless you really go out of the 'normal' routes ,you really won't come across it..it's not a particularly 'interesting' area (most people will have their fill of the proper desert in a few days playing around Tan Tan or Merzouga or Mhamid) and again, the area this happened in isn't one you'd normally cross if you were aiming for Senegal, Gambia or anywhere further south.

Put it in perspective.....how many people were killed in the UK over the new year???

 

[dazzer]

looks like one of the reasons why the Dakar rally as been cancled

 

[Gordon]

looks like one of the reasons why the Dakar rally as been cancled

Yep, its official - cancelled - too risky after the numerous deaths. Feel really sorry for all of those who have lost lots - major impact on participants, support organisations and local economies.

 

[mystic]

TBH Dazzer, unless you go well off the path, you're very unlikely to encounter anything like this.

This happened 440 miles away from Noukchott, which is where most people travelling through Mori on there way to proper black Africa will pass through.

The area it occurred in has always been a bit iffy, it's where the Polisario radicals hide out (and I wish their story was better known......say no more) and there are a lot of lawless elements in that area.

We've seen lots of police activity near borders, crossed minefields and have seen guns worn fairly openly on streets, but unless you really go out of the 'normal' routes ,you really won't come across it..it's not a particularly 'interesting' area (most people will have their fill of the proper desert in a few days playing around Tan Tan or Merzouga or Mhamid) and again, the area this happened in isn't one you'd normally cross if you were aiming for Senegal, Gambia or anywhere further south.

Put it in perspective.....how many people were killed in the UK over the new year???

Dazzer, sensible words which put things into perspective from Fanum here.

I'm assuming you're planning riding down the Atlantic route (as am I in a few weeks time). You have to accept there's always an element of risk in any venture taking you outside of your usual comfort zone, and if you're anything like me, that's a small part of the reason we do it.

These incidents, very disturbing though they are, occurred way outside the north - south route between the Western Sahara and the Senegal border.

As regards the rally, like others, feel great sadness for all concerned, the competitors, the spectators but most of all for the people of N.W.Africa for whom the rally stood to inject a needed boost into their local economies.

As was said on the radio late on today, travel in Algeria, Tunisia, and parts of Mali has been problematic for some time. Now Mauritania, for the moment at least, looks like it may be joining them. Not a very cheering thought!

BTW. For Christmas my daughter bought me "Endgame in the Western Sahara" (Toby Shelley) Makes for some very interesting reading, though not finished it yet.