Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has threatened to target Chinese workers in Africa

Here is some worrying news from the Telegraph yesterday.  Al-Qaeda's North African wing has threatened to target Chinese workers in Africa in revenge for the deaths of Muslim Uighurs in Xinjiang, according to a risk analysis company. Excerpt:

The threat came in the wake of race riots in far West China which claimed the lives of at least 136 Han Chinese and 46 Uighurs.

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) said it would target the 50,000 Chinese who are working in Algeria and launch attacks against other Chinese projects in Northern Africa, said Stirling Assynt, which is based in London.

"This threat should be taken seriously," it said, adding that three weeks ago the group had ambushed a convoy of Algerian security forces who were protecting Chinese engineers, killing 24 Algerians. "Future attacks of this kind are likely to target security forces and Chinese engineers alike."

China has repeatedly linked Uighur separatist groups to Al-Qaeda, but this is the first time that the terrorist network has made a direct threat against China or its overseas projects.

Full story: Telegraph by Malcolm Moore in Shanghai, Tuesday, 14 Jul 2009 - Al-Qaeda vows revenge on China over Uighur deaths.

Here is an excerpt fom National Post, Canada, Tuesday, 14 July 2009 by Aileen McCabe, Asia Correspondent, Canwest News Service:
Al-Qaeda threatens China

AQM's sudden interest in defending Uighurs comes after a week of near indifference to their plight by the Islamic world. The sole exception was Turkey, where public opinion prompted the government into a quick defence of its ethnic blood brothers.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was particularly outspoken.

"The incidents in China are a genocide," he said. "There's no point in interpreting this otherwise."

On Tuesday, the official China Daily called on Erdogan "to take back his remarks."

P.S.  Over the past month or so this site Sudan Watch has received no visits from China which is most unusual.  For years Sudan Watch received several visits daily from China but ever since Google access in China was disrupted, all visits have ceased.  If you are reading this in China or know of Google-Blogger blogspots being blocked in China, please share and say hi in the comments or by email.  Thanks.

UPDATE: China is back on the ball. An hour after posting the above, Sudan Watch had a visit from China! Yay!