Libya, Sudan improve counterterrorism work, US says.
WASHINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) – Libya and Sudan improved their cooperation in the war on terrorism last year but remain on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism and subject to its sanctions, the State Department said on Wednesday.
Releasing its annual report on terrorism, the department said Libya was “instrumental” in last year’s handover of Amar Saifi, one of Algeria’s most wanted Islamic militant leaders accused in the kidnapping of 32 European tourists.
Saifi, who has been identified as second-in-command of the al Qaeda-aligned Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat, was caught in Libya near the Chadian-Libyan border according to Algerian authorities.
However, the Department cited its “serious concerns” about allegations of a Libyan plot to assassinate Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah and it continued to evaluate Libyan promises to stop using violence for political purposes.
Sudan improved its counterterrorism cooperation despite strains with the United States over the violence in Darfur, where U.S. officials accuse Khartoum of supporting Arab militias accused of a campaign of murder, rape and looting against villagers.
Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria all remain on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism,
Presence on the terrorism list bars a country from getting U.S. arms, controls sales of items with military and civilian applications, limits U.S. aid and requires Washington to vote against loans from international financial institutions.
Iraq was dropped from the list in October, 2004 following the 2003 U.S. invasion that toppled former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.
The State Department stirred up a controversy last week when it announced that it would exclude detailed statistics on international terrorist attacks from its annual report, drawing accusations that it was trying to suppress the information.
Those statistics, which congressional aides say show a tripling in “significant” international terrorist attacks last year, are to be released later on Wednesday, officials said.