Belmokhtar was been a big-shot bandit, once given the name of Mr. Marlboro, a nod to his deeds of derring-do in cigarette smuggling. It hardly matters if he is a member, or not a member, or was once a member, of Al Qaeda. Too much attention is given to trivia like that.  He could be the member of this group, or that, or not of any group. But his acts, his attitudes, and those of the men under him, reflect the Islamic texts that inculcate hatred of non-Muslims. That's what counts. Those who keep spending time solemnly parsing which Muslim murderer or which Muslim promoter or defender or camouflager of Muslim supremacism belongs to which group, are wasting time and deflecting Western attention from the real problem: Islam, and the degree to which its adherents, or those who call themselves Muslims, participoate in, or make things easier for those who participate in, the Jihad which is conducted using many different instruments, of which violence through terrorism or thorugh conventional combat, qital, is only one. And Jihad for Muslims, however they pursue it, remains the same goal: to expand the boundaries of Dar al-Islam, to ensure that in the end the world belongs to Islam, which everywhere dominates, and Muslims rule, everywhere.

From lefigaro.fr:

Belmokhtar revendique la prise d'otages au nom d'al-Qaida

L'Algérien Mokhtar Belmokhtar a revendiqué au nom d'al-Qaida la responsabilité de la prise d'otages du site gazier de Tiguentourine, au Sahara algérien, selon le site internet d'information mauritanien Sahara Media.

Dans une vidéo, cet ancien "émir" d'al-Qaida au Maghreb islamique (Aqmi) demande également à la France de cesser ses bombardements aériens au Nord-Mali. 

"Nous, al-Qaida, annonçons cette opération bénie", déclaré le responsable djihadiste dans cette vidéo que le site n'a pas mis en ligne directement. "Nous sommes prêts à négocier avec les Occidentaux et le gouvernement algérien à condition qu'ils mettent un terme à leurs bombardements des musulmans du Mali".