 Algerian militants believed to belong to an al Qaeda-inspired group shot dead seven civilians near the capital Algiers, security sources said on Wednesday. The rebels, believed to be members of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), carried out the attack in the small town of Khraissia on Tuesday night. No details were immediately available on the circumstances of the incident. National police chief Ali Tounsi said recently the government would boost security forces by 30 percent to 180,000 and set up surveillance cameras in main cities to cope with rebel attacks and criminality over the next five years. |