U.S. aid worker shot dead in Mauritanian capital
* Unidentified gunman kills U.S. aid worker
* No immediate claim of responsibility
(Adds detail, background)
By Vincent Fertey
NOUAKCHOTT, June 23 (Reuters) - A U.S. aid worker was shot dead by an unidentified gunman in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott on Tuesday.
Mauritania straddles black and Arab Africa and is an ally of the West in its fight against al Qaeda, which has been increasingly active in northwest Africa and the Sahara desert.
The American, the director of an aid group working in Mauritania, was shot in the head on a street in the centre of the usually quiet city. His body was taken from the scene in an ambulance.
"He had been living in Mauritania for six years," said one of the victim's friends, who did not wish to be named.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility and the U.S. ambassador to Mauritania made no comment.
In December 2007, four French tourists were killed by the North African wing of al Qaeda, and the Israeli embassy was attacked in 2008.
Al Qaeda has shown signs of intensifying its attacks in the Sahara, which stretches across nearby Mali and Niger.
Earlier this month, the group killed a British hostage, the first time it executed a Westerner it had kidnapped, after other hostages were freed in exchange for reported ransom payments.
Regional analysts say the local wing of al Qaeda is motivated as much by money as it is ideology, buying hostages from Tuareg rebels in the hope of receiving ransom payments that are thought to run into the millions of dollars. Governments of kidnapped nationals routinely deny that money has changed hands.
Mauritania's military ruler, General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, made fighting al Qaeda a priority when he seized power from the country's first democratically elected leader last August. Delayed elections are due to be held on July 18. (Writing by Daniel Magnowski; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)
* No immediate claim of responsibility
(Adds detail, background)
By Vincent Fertey
NOUAKCHOTT, June 23 (Reuters) - A U.S. aid worker was shot dead by an unidentified gunman in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott on Tuesday.
Mauritania straddles black and Arab Africa and is an ally of the West in its fight against al Qaeda, which has been increasingly active in northwest Africa and the Sahara desert.
The American, the director of an aid group working in Mauritania, was shot in the head on a street in the centre of the usually quiet city. His body was taken from the scene in an ambulance.
"He had been living in Mauritania for six years," said one of the victim's friends, who did not wish to be named.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility and the U.S. ambassador to Mauritania made no comment.
In December 2007, four French tourists were killed by the North African wing of al Qaeda, and the Israeli embassy was attacked in 2008.
Al Qaeda has shown signs of intensifying its attacks in the Sahara, which stretches across nearby Mali and Niger.
Earlier this month, the group killed a British hostage, the first time it executed a Westerner it had kidnapped, after other hostages were freed in exchange for reported ransom payments.
Regional analysts say the local wing of al Qaeda is motivated as much by money as it is ideology, buying hostages from Tuareg rebels in the hope of receiving ransom payments that are thought to run into the millions of dollars. Governments of kidnapped nationals routinely deny that money has changed hands.
Mauritania's military ruler, General Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, made fighting al Qaeda a priority when he seized power from the country's first democratically elected leader last August. Delayed elections are due to be held on July 18. (Writing by Daniel Magnowski; Editing by Matthew Tostevin)
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