The French newspaper "Le Figaro" said that the report from the heart of the Algerian intelligence services may undermine the official narrative about the killing of the seven French monks in the midst of the civil war in March 1996 in Tabharin, in the state of Medea, and this weakens the narrative of the Islamic attack. And it reinforces the hypothesis that the intelligence services manipulated the reports.

In a report by Christophe Kornevin, the newspaper said that it had seen a French intelligence note dated January 17, revealing the account of agent Karim Moulay, who says that he worked between 1987 and 2001 in the former Security Intelligence Directorate, especially the DRS that was dissolved in 2015. , Before applying for political asylum in the United Kingdom since the beginning of 2001.

Karim Moulay claims - according to the memo - that he was subjected to death threats in an email sent in 2015 to Anti-terrorism Judge Mark Trividitch, who was at the time responsible for the investigation of the Bahrain case.

He explained, in a message accompanied by a photo montage showing a photo montage, that he was subjected to "electronic harassment" and "was contacted by phone several times" and asked him to "change his copy, which indicates the involvement of the DRS in the death of monks, and the implication of the Armed Islamic Group."

Dangerous threats

The writer said that Moulay became anti-regime after he witnessed the assassination of the DRS, the director of a university in 1994, and felt threatened by his former colleagues, and became subject to severe hatred when he admitted in 2010 to the involvement of Algerian agencies in the attack of the Atlas Asni Hotel in Marrakech in 1994, and the matter has worsened since He accused the former DRS of involvement in the killing of monks.

However - as the newspaper report says - Moulay refused to surrender, and narrated an explosive and detailed story recorded in a report in which he summarized the facts in 2012, in front of two Scottish police inspectors who came to hear him as a witness.

Returning to the kidnapping of sailing monks, Moulay mentions the existence of a mysterious "circle of death", and confirms that the true Islamic groups in the mountainous Medea region, where the French monastery is located, were "in constant conflict" with "forged" groups established by the DRS to manipulate public opinion .

Moulay confirmed - according to the French memorandum - that the terrorist "Jamal Zitouni" was working for the interest of the DRS, and that he "was sent to the jungle to infiltrate the Armed Islamic Group", before he became the "Prince" who claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of the monks.

Although the owners of the monastery had a "good reputation in the region" for their assistance to the local population, the Algerian authorities have two criticisms against them, the first of which is that "the monks concluded an agreement in 1993 to provide medical assistance to the Islamists in exchange for their safety," and the other is that they participated in the Saint Egidio conference. " Which brought together, on the initiative of the Catholics, the opposition parties with the aim of finding a peaceful end to the conflict, ”which made the DRS“ ask them to leave Algeria. ”

The monks' lawyer at a press conference (Reuters)

An unexpected turn

And in 1996 - according to the previous client - when Algeria needed to gain international credibility and secure French support in fighting the Islamists, the Algerian agencies planned to "kidnap ambassadors from Arab and European countries," and then kidnap the military attaché in the French embassy, ​​"but the project was canceled by an official in the Risk Assessment Department. And, in 1996, officers of the DRS reportedly called for a (important meeting) in Blida to prepare for the kidnapping of monks.

The "Prince" Zaitouni was assigned to do the dirty work - according to the memorandum - and "the project was to kidnap and negotiate their release with the Department of Territorial Security and the Department of External Security, to put pressure on the French authorities." Mock ".

According to Moulay, a first team consisting of Algerian intelligence services and Islamic penitents was supposed to lead the blindfolded monks to a "research and investigation center" in a military barracks in Blida, so that a second team from the Zaytouni Islamic group would receive them to transport them to the jungle. However, things took an unintended turn. It is speculated when real jihadists, led by a man called Abu Musab, tried to get hold of them.

The kidnappers were surprised and "made two round trips" between the shelter and the Blida barracks "to put the hostages in safety." However, the Algerian agencies were under pressure, and it was said that they were alarmed by the idea that the French "envoy" could contact Zeitouni secretly and discover the trick.

Therefore - according to this version of the events - the crime was committed, and the monks were beheaded after they were tortured and killed, and Algeria strongly condemned the operation after their heads were found on the side of the road on May 30, 1996.

Beheading after death

Patrick Baudouin, a lawyer for the families of the victims, says that this version of the events is dangerous even though "the witness in it appears to be from the heart of the system," referring to a group of testimonies confirming that the Armed Islamic Group had been exploited by Military Security.

The report indicated that a delegation of French experts managed in 2014 after delaying going to sea, and in May 2015 the experts ’report concluded that“ heads were beheaded after death, ”and that the monks were assassinated a month before the date of May 23, which was presented by a statement. A journalist for the Armed Islamic Group of questionable authenticity, according to the newspaper.

Moreover, no trace of bullets was found in the skulls of the monks, which denies the rumors of their death in the wrong bombing of the air force, and thanks to the botanical clues, experts were able to reveal that the heads were buried before they were extracted and then discovered.

The idea of ​​tampering with corpses turned into a hypothetical certainty in March 2018, after experts explained that the genetic comparison of the skulls with the DNA of the parents proved that 6 of the seven monks ’bodies had been merged with others when they were placed in coffins, and this“ reinforces the hasty way in which the Algerians placed the bodies at the time. Bury her, "according to the lawyer.

The newspaper concluded that the scientific testimonies and evidence were collected, in addition to about 20 witnesses who had not heard before, including returnees from the Armed Islamic Group and "jailers" who claimed that the prisoners were transferred or detained in a house called Dar Al Hamra, in a place called Tala Al Seer in the Medea region.

Indeed, according to Le Figaro, this French hostage case reeks of a state scandal.