From the ArcaMax Publishing, News & Features Newsletter:
http://www.arcamax.com/news/newsheadlines/s-350496-432536
ALGIERS, Algeria (UPI) -- Algerian government officials say
coordination between al-Qaida and organized crime rings on abductions
were worth nearly $19 million in ransoms in 2007.
Algerian Interior Minister Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni said there were
375 abductions in Algeria in 2007. Of those, 115 were linked to
terrorism and 260 were linked to organized crime, Med Basin Newsline
said.
"Families of the victims paid ($18.7 million)" in ransoms, Zerhouni
said.
Analysts predict a rise in the number of kidnappings in Algeria as the
country generated new wealth from energy exports, though Zerhouni
alleged kidnappers were targeting children for organ-harvesting rings,
Med Basin Newsline said.