Three Britons dead in Algeria - PM

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 20 Januari 2013 | 19.12

20 January 2013 Last updated at 06:57 ET

Three Britons are confirmed to have been killed and three more unaccounted for after the Algeria hostage crisis, the prime minister has said.

One further UK resident is also thought to be dead. The figures include a Briton who was killed on Wednesday.

The 22 other Britons who survived the crisis are now back in the UK.

A raid by Algerian troops ended a four-day siege at the In Amenas gas facility on Saturday. Algeria says at least 23 hostages and 32 militants died.

Algeria's minister of communications said the final death toll might rise and there would be an announcement in the next few hours.

Its government also said the militants were from six different nationalities.

'Cowardly attack'

Speaking at Chequers, Mr Cameron said the attack was a "stark reminder" of the continuing terrorist threat and said he would use Britain's chairmanship of the G8 to ensure that it was at the top of the international agenda.

David Cameron

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David Cameron said the attack was a "stark reminder" of the continuing terrorist threat.

"This is a global threat and it will require a global response. It will require a response that is about years, even decades, rather than months," he said.

"It requires a response that is patient and painstaking, that is tough but also intelligent, but above all has an absolutely iron resolve and that is what we will deliver over these coming years."

The British survivors had flown back to the UK on government and BP chartered flights overnight and were now being reunited with their families, Foreign Secretary William Hague said.

The crisis began on Wednesday when militants attacked two buses carrying foreign workers to the remote site in south-eastern Algeria. A Briton and an Algerian reportedly died in the incident.

The militants then took Algerians and foreign workers hostage at the complex, which was quickly surrounded by the Algerian army.

The Algerian armed forces attacked on Thursday as militants tried to move some of their captives from the facility.

'Iron resolve'

Mr Cameron paid his condolences to the bereaved families, who had undergone "an absolutely dreadful ordeal".

He said questions would be asked about the Algerian response to the crisis, but added: "The responsibility for these deaths lies squarely with the terrorists who launched these vicious and cowardly attacks.

Continue reading the main story
  • Ten Japanese unaccounted for
  • Five Norwegians missing
  • Six Britons and one UK resident feared dead or unaccounted for
  • Unknown number of Americans
  • Possibly citizens of Romania, Thailand, the Philippines, Colombia, South Korea and Austria

"When you are dealing with a terrorist incident on this scale, with up to 30 terrorists, it is extremely difficult to respond and get this right in every respect."

The prime minister said that there were clear similarities with the terrorist threat from Afghanistan and Pakistan, although it was on a different scale.

"What we face is an extremist, Islamist, al-Qaeda-linked terrorist group. Just as we had to deal with that in Pakistan and in Afghanistan so the world needs to come together to deal with this threat in north Africa," he said.

A statement from the kidnappers said the assault on the gas plant was launched in retaliation for French intervention against Islamist groups in neighbouring Mali.

However, France decided only last week to intervene militarily in Mali. Analysts say the assault on the gas facility was well-planned and would have required advance research, as well as possibly inside help.

Algerian officials said the hostage-takers belonged to a new Islamist group formed by a veteran Algerian militant and kidnapper, Mokhtar Belmokhtar, who recently broke from al-Qaeda.

Former hostages

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Some freed British hostages told Algerian TV they were "relieved to be out"

State news agency APS said 685 Algerian workers and 107 out of 132 foreigners working at the plant had been freed.

The nationalities of some of the hostages killed are still not known, but as well as the Britons, US, Norwegian, and Japanese nationals are still missing.

A Colombian citizen resident in the UK is believed to be among the dead, the Colombian president has said, adding the information about Carlos Estrada was "not 100%".

No details have been given of the British hostages.

On Saturday, some of the released Britons released spoke of their relief. Iain Strachan, 38, from Howwood in Renfrewshire, Scotland, said he was "very relieved to be out" and that the Algerian army's assistance had been "fantastic".

The In Amenas gas field is situated at Tigantourine, about 40km (25 miles) south-west of the town of In Amenas and 1,300km (800 miles) south-east of Algiers.

The plant is jointly run by BP, Norway's Statoil and Algeria's state-owned oil company.


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