This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/africa/6547407.stm
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Algerian PM defiant after bombs | Algerian PM defiant after bombs |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Algerian Prime Minister Abdelaziz Belkhadem says parliamentary polls will take place as planned next month despite two bombings in the capital. | Algerian Prime Minister Abdelaziz Belkhadem says parliamentary polls will take place as planned next month despite two bombings in the capital. |
| At least 23 people were killed and 162 hurt in the suicide attacks, one of which targeted Mr Belkhadem's office. | At least 23 people were killed and 162 hurt in the suicide attacks, one of which targeted Mr Belkhadem's office. |
| Mr Belkhadem, who was not in his office at the time of the blast, said the bombers wanted to take Algeria back to "the years of hardship". | Mr Belkhadem, who was not in his office at the time of the blast, said the bombers wanted to take Algeria back to "the years of hardship". |
| A person claiming to be a spokesman for al-Qaeda said it organised the attack. | A person claiming to be a spokesman for al-Qaeda said it organised the attack. |
| There has been no independent verification of the claim. | There has been no independent verification of the claim. |
| The official APS agency, quoting the Algerian authorities, said at least 12 people were killed and 118 injured in the attack on the prime minister's office. | The official APS agency, quoting the Algerian authorities, said at least 12 people were killed and 118 injured in the attack on the prime minister's office. |
| According to the agency, 11 people were killed and 44 injured in the second attack, on a police station in the eastern district of Bab Ezzouar. | According to the agency, 11 people were killed and 44 injured in the second attack, on a police station in the eastern district of Bab Ezzouar. |
| Loud explosion | Loud explosion |
| The violence in Algiers comes a day after the authorities in neighbouring Morocco said they had foiled a plot to target foreign and strategic interests by suicide bombers. | |
| Three suspects blew themselves up after being pursued by the authorities, and a fourth was shot dead by police. It also follows clashes with militants in Tunisia earlier this year. | Three suspects blew themselves up after being pursued by the authorities, and a fourth was shot dead by police. It also follows clashes with militants in Tunisia earlier this year. |
| Violent attacks have been increasing in Algeria since the main Islamist rebel group, the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), changed its name to the al-Qaeda Organisation in the Islamic Maghreb in January. | Violent attacks have been increasing in Algeria since the main Islamist rebel group, the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), changed its name to the al-Qaeda Organisation in the Islamic Maghreb in January. |
| This is a crime, a cowardly act Abdelaziz BelkhademAlgerian Prime Minister Profile: Maghreb al-Qaeda In pictures: Algerian blasts Blasts fuel regional fears | This is a crime, a cowardly act Abdelaziz BelkhademAlgerian Prime Minister Profile: Maghreb al-Qaeda In pictures: Algerian blasts Blasts fuel regional fears |
| Al-Jazeera TV said this was the group that had claimed responsibility for Wednesday's violence. | Al-Jazeera TV said this was the group that had claimed responsibility for Wednesday's violence. |
| BBC Arab Affairs analyst Magdi Abdelhadi says many analysts will link the surge in violence with the ambitions of the Algerian hardline organisation to spread its campaign to neighbouring countries. | BBC Arab Affairs analyst Magdi Abdelhadi says many analysts will link the surge in violence with the ambitions of the Algerian hardline organisation to spread its campaign to neighbouring countries. |
| The city centre explosion was so loud it could be heard up to 10km (six miles) away, residents said. | The city centre explosion was so loud it could be heard up to 10km (six miles) away, residents said. |
| Government employees were injured by flying glass and debris, which spread up to 300m (yards) from the site of the blasts. | Government employees were injured by flying glass and debris, which spread up to 300m (yards) from the site of the blasts. |
| Ambulances went to the scene and police blocked entry to the prime minister's office, which also houses the offices of the interior minister. | Ambulances went to the scene and police blocked entry to the prime minister's office, which also houses the offices of the interior minister. |
| Alarm bells | Alarm bells |
| Our analyst says the attacks are a serious blow for the Algerian authorities which have for years fought Islamist militants. | Our analyst says the attacks are a serious blow for the Algerian authorities which have for years fought Islamist militants. |
| Despite an amnesty announced two years ago, the violence in Algeria has never completely died down since its height in the mid-1990s. | Despite an amnesty announced two years ago, the violence in Algeria has never completely died down since its height in the mid-1990s. |
| The latest scenes of blood on the streets of Algiers will revive painful memories of that civil strife that lasted for a decade and left an estimated 150,000 people dead. | The latest scenes of blood on the streets of Algiers will revive painful memories of that civil strife that lasted for a decade and left an estimated 150,000 people dead. |
| Magdi Abdelhadi says the spectre of a resurgent al-Qaeda operating in North Africa, close to Europe's southern border, will send the alarm bells ringing in European capitals. | Magdi Abdelhadi says the spectre of a resurgent al-Qaeda operating in North Africa, close to Europe's southern border, will send the alarm bells ringing in European capitals. |
| It may also have a devastating impact on the prospect of more open and democratic societies in the region. | It may also have a devastating impact on the prospect of more open and democratic societies in the region. |
| He says that as in other Arab states, the authorities have used the threat of terror in the past to curb civil and political freedoms. | He says that as in other Arab states, the authorities have used the threat of terror in the past to curb civil and political freedoms. |
Are you in the region? If you have any information you'd like to share with the BBC you can do so using the form below. | Are you in the region? If you have any information you'd like to share with the BBC you can do so using the form below. |
| You can send your pictures and moving footage to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 0044 7725 100 100 | You can send your pictures and moving footage to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 0044 7725 100 100 |
| Click here for terms and conditions on sending photos and video | Click here for terms and conditions on sending photos and video |
| When taking photos or filming please do not endanger yourself or others, take unnecessary risks or infringe any laws. | When taking photos or filming please do not endanger yourself or others, take unnecessary risks or infringe any laws. |
| I was in a building not very far from the police station where the second bomb exploded. At first we thought that it was an earthquake. Students were confused and crying. Everything came to a standstill. There was no transport and everywhere was blocked. Just last week there were two bomb threats at two universities. Some of the students were in the middle of an exam and had to be evacuated. I really wonder what is next.Amina Rashid, Bab Ezzouar, Algeria | I was in a building not very far from the police station where the second bomb exploded. At first we thought that it was an earthquake. Students were confused and crying. Everything came to a standstill. There was no transport and everywhere was blocked. Just last week there were two bomb threats at two universities. Some of the students were in the middle of an exam and had to be evacuated. I really wonder what is next.Amina Rashid, Bab Ezzouar, Algeria |
| My husband is visiting his family in Bab Ezzouar. The police station in Bab Ezzouar is located on the edge of a big park where the popular playground faces the front entrance. I'm really happy not to be in Alger. We take the kids to that park everyday when we're there. Leila , Stockholm, Sweden | My husband is visiting his family in Bab Ezzouar. The police station in Bab Ezzouar is located on the edge of a big park where the popular playground faces the front entrance. I'm really happy not to be in Alger. We take the kids to that park everyday when we're there. Leila , Stockholm, Sweden |