|
Algeria says that a total of 37 foreigners and an Algerian died at a desert gas plant and five people are still missing after the four-day hostage-taking siege. American, British, French, Japanese, Norwegian, Filipino and Romanian workers were dead or missing after the attack. Veteran Islamist fighter Mokhtar Belmokhtar has claimed responsibility on behalf of al Qaeda. Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal told a news conference that 29 Islamists had been killed during the siege and three were taken alive. Most of the gunmen were from various states of north and west Africa. "Actually this group which had 32 terrorists, about one third of them were Algerians and the rest were from eight nationalities" With numerous hostages unaccounted for the final death toll is likely to be higher. Algeria insisted from the start of the crisis there would be no negotiation in the face of terrorism. The civil war with Islamist insurgents in the 1990s has claimed 200,000 lives. | 
