Report: Mossad agent held in Algieria
Algerian daily reports Israeli carrying fake Spanish passport being held by security forces
The paper said the suspect was carrying a fake Spanish passport.
According to the report, which has already been quoted by other members of the Arab press, Algierian authorities arrested a 35-year old man who calls himself Alberto in Hassai Messaoud, a city located 800 km south of Algiers, and then took him to the capital city for questioning.
The city is central to Algeria's oil region, and many engineers and technicians who work for the industry are stationed there. The report said Alberto arrived on a flight from Barcelona after securing a visa from one of Algeria's European consulates.
It said he presented himself as an Israeli-Arab living in Jerusalem, and claimed to support Hamas in its struggle against Fatah. He was also said to have expressed interest in Islamic activity in the city, and prayed at the local mosque.
The suspected agent was given a phone call to his family in Tel Aviv because rumors that he had been kidnapped by a radical Islamist group were circulating.
The report adds that Israel appealed for his release through the US, as the state has no diplomatic relations with Algeria. FBI Deputy Director John Pistole visited the country last Thursday.
The Ennahar El Djadid report has not been confirmed by any other source, but it follows an article in the London-based Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, which said over the weekend that Algerian security forces were investigating the disappearance of an Israeli carrying a Spanish passport in the Saharan Desert region.
The Arab daily reported that Algerian authorities suspected the Israeli was being held by terrorists affiliated with Al-Qaeda.
Ali Waked contributed to this report
