Terror fears spark ship escorts

By Chris Morris BBC Europe correspondent

Nato will be patrolling the Straits as long as it is needed

Fears of another terrorist attack by al-Qaeda have prompted Nato to begin escorting allied civilian ships through the Strait of Gibraltar at the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea.

Spanish, Portuguese and American warships are involved in the operation, which began at the request of the United States.

Before the end of this month, a British frigate will take command.

All the evidence is that the potential threat to shipping is on the increase.

Nato has had plenty of bad publicity recently, with bitter splits emerging between member countries on what to do about Iraq.

MARITIME TARGETS

USS Cole, Yemen, 2000

Limburg, Yemen, 2002

Three men jailed for Straits speedboat plot, Morocco, 2003

So the alliance is keen to demonstrate that it has a real role to play in the campaign against international terrorism, and the Strait of Gibraltar has been clearly identified as a place of potential threat.

In fact, the channel which separates Morocco from Spain is at one stage only 19 kilometres (12 miles) wide - a real choke point.

Vice Admiral Ferdinando Sanfelice Di Monteforte, the Commander of Allied Naval forces in southern Europe, admits that the threat could come from anywhere.

Nato servicemen are in the front line of the war against al-Qaeda

"Small boats, slow low flying aircraft as well are... threats actually, but we do not discount the fact that a fishing vessel may be loaded with high explosive."

On the bridge of the Spanish frigate Numancia, they are looking for the enemy.

They know al-Qaeda has hit maritime targets before.

In Yemen, in October 2000, 17 American sailors died when suicide bombers drove a rubber dinghy packed with explosives into the USS Cole.

Last year, a French oil tanker, the Limberg, was set ablaze in a similar attack: and last month, three alleged al-Qaeda operatives were jailed in Morocco after another plot, here in the Strait of Gibraltar, was uncovered.

So Nato will be patrolling the Strait every day it is needed.

Military escorts for civilian shipping are a sign of the times.