THE US-led occupation of Iraq had boosted recruitment to Islamist groups in Europe and was a "black hole" pulling in militants from across the Middle East, France's top anti-terrorist judge warned yesterday.

Jean-Louis Bruguiere also said Southeast Asia remained under serious threat of attack from Islamist movements despite police successes in capturing suspects from Jemaah Islamiah and other groups with links to al-Qa'ida.

"In Southeast Asia there are real potential worries, even if today everything seems calm and under control," he said, singling out Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and The Philippines.

There was so far no evidence of an organised network in Europe smuggling militants into Iraq to fight US forces there, Mr Bruguiere said, but he warned that groups linked to al-Qa'ida were making full use of the instability as a propaganda tool.

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