Central America on alert for al Qaeda suspects
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MANAGUA, Nicaragua (Reuters) - Central American countries went on alert on Tuesday for two al Qaeda suspects, including a Kenyan on the
FBI's most wanted terrorist list, who were said to be in the region.
Nicaragua raised the alarm by warning that Kenya's Ahmed Salim Swedan and a Yemeni colleague could be somewhere in the tropical isthmus.
In a brief statement, the Interior Ministry said Nicaragua had tightened its borders to prevent the pair from entering the country.
Neighbors Guatemala and
El Salvador, a close U.S. ally which has a small batch of troops in
Iraq, also boosted security at their borders after the Nicaraguan warning.
Swedan is wanted for the U.S. Embassy bombings in Africa in 1998 that killed more than 200 people. He appears on the FBI most wanted terrorists' list with a reward of up to $5 million for his capture. The ministry gave only the surname of the other suspect, a Yemeni it said was called Altuwiti.
Nicaragua told its border officials "to maintain vigilance to guarantee our country does not become scene to the presence of elements linked to international terrorism."
It did not say how the pair were detected or what they were suspected of doing in the region, home to the Panama Canal. Panamanian officials said they were unaware of the alert.
U.S. officials have voiced concern that Nicaraguan anti-aircraft missiles left over from the Cold War could fall into terrorists' hands.
El Salvador sent photographs of the two suspects to border crossings, airports and sea ports, said Ramon Hernandez, spokesman for the immigration service.
An Islamist group claiming links to al Qaeda last August threatened attacks inside El Salvador unless the Central American country withdrew its troops from Iraq. El Salvador has kept its force there.
Last year, Honduras said Saudi-born Adnan El Shukrijumah, suspected of links to al Qaeda, was spotted there but fled the country before police could arrest him. He later appeared on a list of Washington's 14 most wanted al Qaeda suspects.
