SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) - El Salvador stepped up national security measures on Monday after a group claiming ties to al Qaeda threatened to attack the Central American country unless it pulls its troops out of Iraq.
The group, which calls itself Mohammed Atta Brigades - al Qaeda of Jihad, has vowed to strike inside El Salvador if the tiny nation does not cancel its plans to send a new contingent of soldiers to Iraq this month.
Calling the threats "democratic blackmail," President Tony Saca said his government was beefing up security at borders, at the country's airport and at customs and immigration posts.
"Whether they are true or false, rumors or groundless pieces of information, we are now acting. It is our responsibility," Saca told a news conference in the capital.
He insisted he would not back down in the face of the threat, which was posted on an Islamist Web site, and he said local intelligence services were tracking "people who have become suspects." But he gave no further details.
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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040809/wl_nm/security_elsalvador_dc&cid=574&ncid=1480
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