SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP)--Bosnian authorities, responding to
media reports that they gave Canada information leading to the arrest of
17 militant suspects there, said Wednesday only that they had cooperated
with intelligence services in many countries.
Canada
arrested the suspects Friday and Saturday and said it had foiled plans
for attacks in southeast Canada. Officials said the arrests were ordered
after the group acquired three tons of ammonium nitrate, which can be mixed
with fuel oil to make a powerful explosive.
The Bosnian daily newspaper Nezavisne Novine from northeastern city
of Banja Luka, citing an unnamed official of the state attorney's office,
reported Tuesday that Bosnian police helped the arrests in Canada.
"We have exchanged important information and we believe that this helped
in the arrests of the suspects," the daily quoted the unnamed official
as saying.
Wednesday, state attorney's office spokesman Boris Grubesic didn't deny
the report, but said only, "Over the last several months during the investigations
on terrorist activities the attorney's office has been cooperating with
intelligence services of many countries.
"As the case is still in process, we cannot reveal the details or say
with which countries we worked," he told The Associated Press.
Any information shared with the Canadian authorities could be linked
to a case against three militant suspects in Bosnia.
In May, the Bosnian state court opened a trial against three men - a
Swede, a Turk and a Bosnian - charged with having planned an attack in
Bosnia or another European country.
Swedish national Bektasevic and Turkish resident of Denmark Abdulkadir
Cesur, are charged with planning the terrorist act. Bosnian citizen, Bajro
Ikanovic is charged with supplying them with explosives.
The group was arrested at the end of 2005 after police, acting on a
tip, raided an apartment Bektasevic and Cesur had rented upon arrival in
Sarajevo from Sweden and Denmark.
The charges against them said their aim was "to commit a terrorist act
on the territory of Bosnia-Herzegovina or some other European country"
to force the withdrawal of forces from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Following the arrests in Sarajevo, Bosnian authorities informed Denmark
and the U.K. of the findings, which led to several arrests in those countries.
Denmark, Sweden, Bosnia and the U.K. have been cooperating in the investigation.
June 07, 2006 07:35 ET (11:35 GMT)
