War and Conflict Journal

The leader of the Sunni insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq, known by the names Abu Hamza al-Muhajer and Abu Ayyub al-Masri, and several of his top lieutenants have recently left Iraq for Afghanistan, according to group leaders and Iraqi intelligence officials, a possible further sign of what Iraqi and U.S. officials call growing disarray and weakness in the organization. It is believed that these al-Qaeda leaders see more prospects for success in Afghanistan and Pakistan than in Iraq.

Washington Post Article:

al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb

Mauritania’s military suffered three dead in a clash with Islamic rebels in the north, near the Algerian border. This clash comes soon after the murders of French tourists in Mauritania. The killers of the tourists are known to be connected to the rebel group formerly known as the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC). The GSPC recently changed its name to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, and has declared its allegiance to the main branch of Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda.

Most mass media news outlets refer to the al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb as al Qaeda in North Africa.

See: Three Mauritanian soldiers killed in desert clash–Reuters UK, Dec. 27, 2007