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| Africa: North |
| GSPC claims Algiers power plant blast |
| 2004-06-27 |
| An Algerian Islamic militant group with ties to al Qaeda claimed responsibility for a blast that rocked a power plant in the capital Algiers last week. The Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) said its "Vulcano Brigade" used a van loaded with explosives for Monday night’s attack in which 11 people were wounded, one day after the army announced the killing of the rebel group leader. "The mujahideen used a van full of explosives to execute the strike. They put it near the external wall of the plant and returned safely to their bases," the group said in a June 22 statement published on its web site. GSPC, the only major rebel group still fighting the secular government, warned of more attacks to come. "This operation is part of a series of skirmishes to provoke the bull before slaughtering it," it added. Reuters could not verify the statement’s authenticity and Interior Ministry officials were not available for comment. The group made no reference in its statement to the killing of its leader Nabil Sahraoui and his main aides in a military operation last week. Sahraoui established links with al Qaeda after taking over, a year ago, what is believed to be North Africa’s largest militant group. Formed in 1998, the group has focused on targeting authorities rather than civilians. The blast, near a luxury hotel in central Algiers, was powerful enough to leave a huge crater, burned-out cars and shattered windows. The government said the cause of the blast was unclear, while security experts and newspapers said it bore the hallmarks of a car bomb, not seen in Algiers since the late 1990s at the height of an Islamic militant insurrection. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |