CASABLANCA, Morocco — It seemed a monumental drug bust. Police captured almost three dozen Moroccans last month trying to move hundreds of pounds of cocaine through the country.

But it turned out to be much more than drug deal. Moroccan government officials now say those arrested have ties to Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

“We are dealing with an apparent coordination and collaboration between drug traffickers and terrorists linked to Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb,” said Interior Minister Taieb Cherquaoui after the arrests. Thirty-four people were detained for smuggling more than 1,300 pounds of cocaine from Algeria and Mauritania.

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/morocco/101101/morocco-battles-al-qaeda-the-islamic-maghreb