Italian police link Somali migrant traffickers to militants

FILE - In this Oct. 12, 2013 file photo, a man covered with a blanked is helped to disembark from a Maltese Navy ship at the Valletta harbor in Malta, after being rescued at sea. An Italian newsmagazine has obtained recordings of telephone calls surrounding a deadly 2013 migrant boat sinking, revealing how a Syrian father's desperate calls for help went unheeded for hours as Italy and Malta argued over who should mount the rescue. The Italian coast guard responded to the report on the L'Espresso magazine website Wednesday, May 10, 2013 by noting that the incident occurred in Malta's area of search-and-rescue responsibility. (AP Photo/Lino Arrigo Azzopardi, files) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Oct. 12, 2013 file photo, a child is helped disembark from a Maltese Navy ship at the Valletta harbor, Malta. An Italian newsmagazine has obtained recordings of telephone calls surrounding a deadly 2013 migrant boat sinking, revealing how a Syrian father's desperate calls for help went unheeded for hours as Italy and Malta argued over who should mount the rescue. The Italian coast guard responded to the report on the L'Espresso magazine website Wednesday, May 10, 2013 by noting that the incident occurred in Malta's area of search-and-rescue responsibility. (AP Photo/Lino Arrigo Azzopardi, files) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this Oct. 12, 2013 file photo, a body is lowered from a Maltese Navy ship at the Valletta harbor in Malta. An Italian newsmagazine has obtained recordings of telephone calls surrounding a deadly 2013 migrant boat sinking, revealing how a Syrian father's desperate calls for help went unheeded for hours as Italy and Malta argued over who should mount the rescue. The Italian coast guard responded to the report on the L'Espresso magazine website Wednesday, May 10, 2013 by noting that the incident occurred in Malta's area of search-and-rescue responsibility. (AP Photo/Lino Arrigo Azzopardi, files) (The Associated Press)

Italian police say they have found indirect links between Islamic militants and a Somali-run migrant trafficking and money transfer ring that was busted in overnight raids in southern Italy.

Police said the leader of the Bari-based ring had been in telephone contact with a Somali man arrested in Italy in July on suspicion of having helped two Islamic State foreign fighters enter Italy via Malta.

A police statement said other members of the ring frequented websites linked to Al-Shabab, Somalia's homegrown Islamic extremist rebels linked to al-Qaida.

The dozen Somalis targeted in the raids Wednesday are accused of transporting migrants to northern Europe, including with false documents, and running a money transfer network.

Bari prosecutor Giuseppe Volpe says the "hawala" transfer network "is the same used to finance international terrorism."