Mauritania and Nigeria are among West African nations alleged by some Western think tanks to have al-Qaida cells and top al-Qaida figures came from Mauritania.
Critics say the European Command, traditionally focused on Europe, is not well-equipped to pay closer attention to Africa. The Heritage Foundation, a conservative U.S. think tank, is pushing for the U.S.-based Central Command to take over responsibility for the entire continent.

The European Command's new plans pay more attention to Africa and its oil supplies. The Gulf of Guinea is seen as a possible alternative to the oil reserves in the volatile Middle East. The region already supplies the United States with 15 percent of its oil, a figure expected to rise to 25 percent by 2015.

Just a couple of weeks ago, opinion polls had indicated that the propositions, known as Propositions 57 and 58, were headed for defeat by a large margin.
Proposition 57, which authorizes the state to sell $15 billion in bonds to raise money to pay off previous budget deficits, was supported by 63 percent of voters. Proposition 58, requiring officials to balance the state budget each year without deficit spending and borrowing, won by 71 percent to 29 percent.


The Bush administration plans to impose sanctions on Syria within weeks for its support of terrorist groups and for failing to stop guerrillas entering Iraq (news - web sites), congressional officials and other sources familiar with the matter said on Friday.
The administration's move against Syria would stand in stark contrast to President Bush (news - web sites)'s decision to ease sanctions on Libya as a reward for scrapping its nuclear arms programs.