Paris (CNN) -- The leader of an Islamist group whose members were targeted in a series of French police raids denies any contact with Toulouse gunman Mohammed Merah, lawyer Philippe Missamou said Saturday.The leader of the Forsane Alizza group, Mohammed Achamlane, was among 19 people arrested Friday over alleged connections to radical Islam, Missamou said.
The raids came a week after Merah, who killed seven people in a series of attacks, was shot dead after a long siege in the southwestern city of Toulouse.
French media reports suggested Merah had developed connections with the pro-al Qaeda group, which has a cluster of followers in Toulouse.
Forsane Alizza was outlawed in January for encouraging French citizens to travel to Afghanistan to fight jihad. Read More
