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Updated 12.00pm
EUROPE IS ON high alert today as the suspected mastermind of a jihadist cell in Belgium remains at large.
In the wake of the deadly attacks in France and anti-terror raids in Belgium, EU foreign ministers are to meet in Brussels to discuss ways to boost cooperation to combat the threat posed by radicalised Europeans returning home after fighting in Iraq and Syria.
Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charlie Flanagan, is attending today’s meeting, which comes as the bloc prepares for a special leaders’ summit on February 12 dedicated to fighting terrorism.
High alert
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Flanagan said
“We need strong partnership between Member States as well as cooperation between the EU and third countries and organisations in the Middle East and elsewhere. The recent appalling terrorist attacks in France and Nigeria remind us that terrorism does not respect borders.”
He said that it was important to have a policy of integration, so that people can be dissuaded from taking part in fighting abroad.
He said he is satisfied from discussions with the Minister for Justice that every effort is being made to monitor the activities of people from Ireland travelling to fight in conflict countries. He said that the Minister Frances Fitzgerald is updated on a daily basis by the gardaí.
Flanagan said that every effort is being made to ensure that “we are fully aware of any threat” but said that “obviously it is difficult to give guarantees”.
Ireland remains alert
He added that any threat to Ireland is low, but said it is important to remain on alert.
Today’s meeting will give countries the opportunity to talk about making greater improvements in co-ordination, the exchange of information and data, said Flanagan.
With tensions heightened, the second gunman in the attack on Charlie Hebdo magazine, which killed 12 people, was buried discreetly in an unmarked grave near Paris late Saturday in the hope that it would not become a pilgrimage site for radical Islamists.
Meanwhile, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, considered the brains behind the cell plotting to kill Belgian police, was still on the run days after the group was dismantled by intelligence services.
But the probe appeared to be progressing with Belgian federal prosecutors announcing they would seek the extradition of a suspect arrested in Athens on Saturday “who could be linked” to the cell.
Protests
In Germany, police banned a rally by the anti-Islamic PEGIDA movement and other open-air gatherings planned for today in the eastern city of Dresden, saying there was a “concrete threat” of an attack against its leadership.
The group claimed the threat came from the Islamic State group based in Syria and Iraq, with local media reporting that PEGIDA’s most prominent leader Lutz Bachmann was the target.
The PEGIDA marches have grown steadily since they began in October and drew a record 25,000 people last Monday in the wake of the Paris attacks that left 17 people dead.
The anti-Islamic rallies have spread to other European countries as well, with the first Danish PEGIDA march to take place in Copenhagen on today. Organisers said they were expecting some 300 people.
Separately, a French court on Sunday prevented a rally by anti-Islamist groups in Paris on the grounds that they were promoting Islamophobia.
Meanwhile in a New York Times op-ed, French far-right leader Marine Le Pen urged the government to denounce as “Islamists” the perpetrators of the Paris attacks.
“France, land of human rights and freedoms, was attacked on its own soil by a totalitarian ideology: Islamic fundamentalism,” Le Pen wrote.
Cherif Kouachi, one of two brothers who attacked satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo on January 7, was buried in Gennevilliers, a day after the funeral of his older brother Said in the northeastern city of Reims.
The family, including Cherif Kouachi’s widow, kept away from the funeral, the mayor’s office said.
The brothers were shot dead by police after a three-day manhunt following their attack on Charlie Hebdo, which had enraged many Muslims around the world with its repeated publication of cartoons lampooning the Prophet Mohammed.
Anger erupted in a string of majority Muslim countries after the magazine responded to the attack by running another caricature last week, showing the prophet under the headline “All Is Forgiven”.
The worst unrest was in Niger, where at least 10 people were killed and several churches torched over two days of rioting.
Fresh protests broke out Sunday in Pakistan where thousands gathered in almost all major cities, including Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad, chanting angry slogans and burning French flags.
Charlie Hebdo
Charlie Hebdo’s chief editor has defended the cartoons.
“Every time we draw a cartoon of Mohammed, every time we draw a cartoon of prophets, every time we draw a cartoon of God, we defend the freedom of religion,” Gerard Biard told NBC’s “Meet the Press” programme.
The weekly has sold 2.7 million copies of the post-killings “survivors’ issue” in France alone and said it would extend its print run to seven million copies — exponentially more than the weekly’s normal circulation of 60,000.
French police are meanwhile still questioning nine people arrested Friday on suspicion of providing logistical support to Amedy Coulibaly, another Islamist gunman who claimed to be working with the Kouachi brothers.
Coulibaly killed four Jews in a siege at a Paris kosher supermarket on January 9 before being shot dead by police.
© – AFP 2015 Additional reporting Christina Finn
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Thankfully nobody has been seriously hurt.
Important to reduce speed in inclement weather conditions.
@FrankDapavia: generally if they airlift someone it means they are seriously hurt.
@Jane:
“None of the injuries sustained in the collisions are understood to be life-threatening”
@FrankDapavia: bit serious enough to be airlifted
@Jane: Sometimes it’s quicker, especially when there are multiple casualties. A major incident plan will utilise multiple resources. It doesn’t mean seriously injured parties.
@FrankDapavia: not life threatening doesn’t mean not serious, two broken legs would be serious but not life endangering, but continue to bicker, it seems to be all you do here.
@oh i dunno: sorry didn’t mean to bicker.
@Jane: I wasn’t replying to you Jane.
@FrankDapavia: I was in the tailback not far from the main incident n/bound. Accidents do happen but some people on the M7 today speeding excessively for the weather conditions! Need to slow down people.
@oh i dunno:
You looking for an argument?
I know that part of the M7 well, even on a dry road it’s a bit dodgy downhill on that bend at 120km so I’m not surprised there was a pile up there when conditions are so bad, glad there was no serious injury’s.
@Caoimhin O’Murchadha: what good drives at 120k in a hail storm?….oh wait
@Caoimhin O’Murchadha: 120kph is the limit, not a target.
Always accidents on that section of the motorway after heavy rain I live locally and know lads with the fire service who once there’s a downpour are guaranteed to be called out unfortunately sometimes to fatalities
Sounds dreadful!
Hope they all recover soon.
@Jarlath Murphy: not the first time there’s been a pile up at that spot. I got stuck behind a 7 car pile up only last year. The road is good, but it’s boring…and the most dangerous thing on it is the “off ramp” for Roscrea. You’d want to be able to manouvere a rollercoaster to get into that exit quick enough.
Arrive Alive Folks.
Did Met Eireann name this storm??
@Ding Ding Denny: Storm Hailey?
There are some seriously stupid people driving cars.
@William Grogan: give the volume of collisions on the stretch of road, Id be more of the view of it being shite road planning.
@Carina Clarke: Excellent comment although its wrong to blame any incident fully on the road. Its nearly always a chain of small events that cause these incidents but yes poor road planning & structure do play an important role. Also we could do with a lot more smart road signs in known danger zones to manage trafic better.
@William Grogan: Fully agree, as a professional driver covering approx 3/400 kilometers per day i am aghast at some of the things i see, I’m surprised i don’t come upon more accidents than i do really. I am actually more surprised the fatality rate is as low as it is, the standard of driving in this country could be described as appalling at best. We really need to look at re-testing every 10 years.
@Mjhint:
That stretch of road is known to have regular accidents.
It’s terrible planning, the off ramp to Roscrea as mentioned is a real hazard.
There was a crash there within days of that section of the motorway being opened.
@Carina Clarke: Or people driving with summer tyres instead of all season tyres for this climate.
@brendan H: I have all season tyres on my car. They are marginally better for stopping distance. What drives me batty in this Country is the insistence of having exits signposted after the turn along with a load of signs in the one place blocking other ones. A great example of this is in Dublin looking for the N4 past the mater hospital. The sign is completely blocked from view. Also signs blocked by greenery. Rubbish road lighting on dual carraigways but the hedging not being high enough or dense enough on the central.divide to drive with headlight on as your blinding the oncoming traffic on the other side of the dual carraigeway.
@Carina Clarke: Bad drivers cause crashes,not taking weather conditions into consideration. I’m from Scotland & you never see people driving like this in wintry conditions. Slow down & use your gears,not your brakes.
@Carina Clarke: agree with you some signs as for m50 are not clear which lame to get into you could nearly be going to say n4 city bound as sign for m50 northbound is to the right where it should be under the road on the left side. I live here imagine the problem for tourists or people not familiar with the area.
@Carina Clarke: or is it road building.
@William Grogan: not only with stupid drivers can hapen like that.there was man with more than 20 years expir…. it can hapen with everyone.
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Bad accedent on m18 South of Crusheen exit again hail on road
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