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Algeria bomb blasts 'kill 47'
One explosion was outside the constitutional court in the Algiers neighborhood of Ben Aknoun and the other was in the residential area of Hydra, state-run television network ENTV reported. The other attack tore the front off the U.N headquarters in the city. A U.N. spokesman told the Associated Press that 10 staff members were killed one of the bombings. Algeria's Minister of State Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni said the explosions were the result of two cars full of explosives, according to the state news agency. So far no group has admitted responsibility for Tuesday's blasts. The U.N. headquarters in the Algerian capital and a separate building housing its refugee agency's office "suffered extensive damage" and staff members were among the casualties, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees spokesman Ron Redmond told CNN. "There have been several casualties but we don't yet have any specific numbers," he said. He said there were usually half a dozen to a dozen people working in the U.N. offices. "Apparently this was an extremely powerful bomb," Redmond told CNN from UNHCR headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. "It's caused a lot of damage and right now we're just trying to sort out where our staff are." The U.N. is located in the Algiers neighborhood of Hydra. Video from the scene showed a shallow crater in the road, surrounded by rubble and crowds of people. A nearby four-story building was missing its facade and there was damage to some of the building's interior. Agence France-Presse said French President Nicolas Sarkozy had condemned the attacks, describing them as "barbarian acts", during a telephone call to his Algerian counterpart Abdelaziz Bouteflika. Hydra is an upscale district home to several Western companies, government buildings, and embassies, according to residents. Ben Aknoun is a more residential area but also houses buildings of the Supreme Court. Posted by: ed 2007-12-11 |
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