Throat slit at fake roadblock
2005-01-22 16:03
Algiers - Three people were killed in separate incidents in Algeria involving armed Islamists, press reports said on Saturday.
A soldier had his throat cut when he was stopped at a fake roadblock at Adekar, 260km east of Algiers, and a young man was killed and two wounded when a group set on them with clubs at Kadiria, 120km southeast of the capital, the report said.
In the third incident, which like the others happened on Wednesday, a gunman was shot dead by troops in the Boukhlil region near Djelfa, 270km south of Algiers.
Newspapers also reported the arrest on Wednesday of a "dangerous terrorist", named as Ahmed Beshairi, at Chlef, 200km of Algiers. He was said to have headed an armed group since 1992 and committed a number of killings in the region.
Algeria's Islamist insurgency has left some 150 000 people dead since 1992 but is now markedly on the wane following successes by security forces.
According to official toll and press reports, at least 31 people have been killed so far this year.