November 4, 2001	Sunday	Shaba’an 17, 1422

ROME, Nov 3: Italian authorities maintained road blocks around the country on Saturday after a warning that Muslim militants in a “killer truck” laden with explosives might attack a major road link, an Interior Ministry source said.

In what was believed to be Italy’s biggest security clampdown since extremists kidnapped and murdered Prime Minister Aldo Moro in 1978, trucks entering tunnels were pulled over for checks, and security was tight at ports and border crossings.

“These measures will be kept up for the following days,” the source told Reuters. “We are aiming to make specific and ‘aimed’ controls so as not to bring traffic to a standstill.”

The Interior Ministry said on Friday it had received “information on fairly good sources that there may be a ‘killer truck’ in the country”.

Police at one roadblock on Friday arrested two Algerians, both with criminal records and known to have links to a Muslim militant movement. They were released later after their documents confirmed they had residence rights in Italy and they were able to prove the reason they were travelling.

Interior Minister Claudio Scajola on Wednesday sent an internal memo to security forces warning that the November 1-4 All Saints long holiday weekend was a high-risk period.

Corriere della Sera newspaper quoted security sources on Friday as saying that Afghan activists with European Union passports were believed to be behind the alleged plan.

The Interior Ministry source said a truck bomb was thought to have entered Italy via eastern Europe, possibly Slovenia. Media reports said security forces believed it might contain one or two tonnes of explosives — enough to destroy a tunnel.

The roadblocks had caused massive delays, but no major traffic tie-ups were reported after Friday evening.—Reuters