Over the last year, the Chinese expatriate presence in Algeria has come
under several attacks attributed to AQIM. AQIM has warned foreigners to flee
Algeria, but Al Qaida has never issued a formal threat against China.
"This threat should be taken seriously," Stirling said. "There is an
increasing amount of chatter among jihadists who claim they want to see
action against China. Some of these individuals have been actively seeking
information on China's interests in the Muslim world, which they could use
for targeting purposes."
The Chinese embassy in Algeria has already warned its nationals of AQIM
attacks. The embassy urged all Chinese and related groups to bolster their
security.
In June 2009, AQIM conducted a major strike on an Algerian security
convoy that was protecting Chinese engineers on a highway project. In all,
24 Algerian military and security officers were killed and their weapons
seized.
"On that occasion they did not attack the Chinese engineers because the
target was the project on which they were working," Stirling, a risk
consultancy, said. "Now, future attacks of this kind are likely to target
security forces and Chinese engineers alike."
Several hundred thousand Chinese were also said to be working in other
North African states. They were identified as Egypt, Libya and Sudan, with
neighboring Yemen said to have a large expatriate population.
The report said Al Qaida does not want to open a new front with China.
But Stirling said the Al Qaida leadership can not be seen as ignoring the
Chinese crackdown on Uighurs Muslims, who comprise a majority in the
Xinjiang region.
"But equally their sense of Muslim solidarity compels them to help
and/or to be seen to be helping," the report said. "This is also a factor in
helping the organisation regain support and funding from their global
constituency."
China has accused Al Qaida of training and financing Muslim separatists,
particularly those linked to the East Turkestan Islamic Movement. The United
Nations and United States have also deemed the movement a terrorist
organization.
