| Among the known senior G.S.P.C. leaders still at large is Mokhtar Belmokhtar, who operates in southern Algeria and in the Sahara. Mr. Hattab, meanwhile, is believed to be dead, killed either by rival members of his group last year or in a firefight with Chadian forces in March. Following that battle, in which more than a dozen G.S.P.C. members were killed, a Chadian rebel group reported that it had seized 17 G.S.P.C. members, including Mr. Saofi, who is wanted for leading an ambush that killed 43 Algerian soldiers last year and for kidnapping 32 European tourists in the Sahara. The Chadian rebel group, known by its French initials M.D.J.T., has been negotiating Mr. Saofi’s handover to Algerian forces since then. Earlier this month, the two sides met in the desert of northern Niger but despite initial reports that the handover had taken place, negotiations continue. |