France: 12 arrested in sweeps against militants

PARIS -- A police official says authorities in southern France have arrested 12 people in sweeps against suspected Islamic militant networks, including three men linked to recruiting fighters for Afghanistan.

The national police official says the arrests were part of two apparently separate counterterrorism case files. Firearms were seized in at least one of the ongoing searches.

In one case, two men were arrested in the southeastern city of Marseille and another in the southwestern city of Bordeaux on alleged ties to a Frenchman arrested in Naples, Italy, last month linked to an Afghan recruiting ring.

The official, who was not authorized to be publicly named, said the other nine suspects were arrested in southern France.