Ban slams 'terror attacks'
2007-12-11 18:27
New York - UN chief Ban Ki-moon strongly condemned the "terrorist attacks" which killed at least 62 people in Algiers and devastated a UN office where staff were trapped for hours after the blasts, his press office said on Tuesday.
"The secretary general condemns in the strongest possible terms the terrorist attacks in Algiers today," the office said in a statement. The UN chief is in Bali, Indonesia for a major climate change conference.
It was the worst of a series of bombings in Algiers and other major Algerian cities this year. Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for all the past attacks.
One bomb ripped through the offices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and neighbouring UN Development Programme (UNDP) and 10 Algerian staff of the world body were among the dead, a senior UN official said. Foreigners were among the injured, hospital sources added.
A second bomb blew apart a passing bus packed with university students outside the Supreme Court.
"The United Nations is currently working closely with local authorities to account for UN personnel who may be missing," the statement said.