[UPDATE: The Daily Maverick has retracted this story, and removed it from their website.]

The Daily Maverick has released an explosive exposé on what they believe are Al-Qaeda training camps throughout South Africa. From strongholds near to Vlakplaas, to a golf estate along the garden route, the evidence is allegedly mounting..

The police’s specialised unit, Crimes Against the State (CATS) and the State Security Agency (SSA) have been monitoring the training of al-Qaeda terrorists in South Africa for several years, without taking any action. A year-long investigation by the Daily Maverick’s DE WET POTGIETER has revealed surprising inaction by police despite incriminating evidence about secret military training camps and sophisticated sniper training at three well-documented locations as well as several others across South Africa. These subversive activities have taken place at a farm near the notorious Apartheid police hit squad camp at Vlakplaas outside Pretoria, as well as a secluded farm in the mountains of the Klein Karoo.

The story reads like a spy novel, with the SAPS using fake furniture companies to infiltrate these alleged training camps – with secret remote-controlled cameras on neighbouring farms and fake license plates et al.

And with stories of intimidation and an abundance of military grade weaponry at every turn, it’s not surprising that the SA government has apparently been pushed by US intelligence units to help, with no follow-through.

Interesting.

Click here for the full story.

[UPDATE: The Daily Maverick has retracted this story, and removed it from their website.]