Algeria's Ministry of the Interior announced on Wednesday (February 6th) that ongoing investigations led to the arrests of six suspects in the December 11th suicide bombings that targeted UNHCR offices and the Constitutional Court building in the district of Hydra in upper Algiers. The government revealed that the same individuals are also suspected in the December 11th, 2006 attack on a bus carrying employees of American-Algerian firm Brown & Root - Condor in Buchawi, west of the capital.
The ministry statement said the men – an information technology engineer for PRC Construction, several contractors, an employee in a real estate development agency and a deliveryman – were all members of the Farouq Battalion, formerly led by terrorist Abderrahmane Bouzegza. Bouzegza was killed in January by security personnel during an operation carried out in the Souk al-Had area of Boumerdès that also led to the arrests of four of his close aides.
The interior ministry explained that the justice ministry had issued 43 subpoenas against Bouzegza, who had been wanted by security forces since 1998.
Security forces announced that the names of the other arrested suspects were not previously known to them. The suspects reportedly became involved with al-Qaeda for financial reasons. Al-Qaeda groups in Algeria often seduce citizens into service with promises of large sums of money. With the current announcement, the government has now identified all the perpetrators of the December 11th attacks.
Interior Minister Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni commented on the dismantling of the cell, saying: "It was the result of strong professionalism and effectiveness exhibited by the security agencies and army forces that are tasked with the anti-terrorism effort." At the same time, he praised "citizens' contributions in achieving these results, thanks to their vigilance and the spirit of citizenship they have shown by standing alongside security forces in combating terrorism."
Despite the victory, the minister warned against laxity and called on Algerians to remain vigilant.
In the February 7th issue of Al-Nahar, security sources unveiled documents confiscated from a member of al-Qaeda. The material reportedly included plans for the assassination of Culture Minister Khalida Toumi. This is the first time in Algeria that a terrorist plot targeting a minister in the current government has been disclosed.
The Algerian public followed the announcements with great interest. Othmane, a 34-year-old advertising worker, told Magharebia the dismantling of the terrorist cells assures citizens that the tight security measures have begun to bear fruit. He said the successful investigation will also allay the fears of many Algiers residents of a return to the violence of the 1990s. He concluded that the news "makes us optimistic about the end of this crisis once and for all, for we have grown tired of living in an atmosphere of fear and instability."
His position is shared by 35-year-old business owner Karima Hemiche, who said she has new hope of walking in the streets without fear of falling victim to a terrorist bombing. Hemiche told Magharebia that she was surprised by the involvement of an information technology engineer in the terrorist plots. She wondered about the reasons for his involvement, especially as the news has frequently linked poor social conditions with terrorism.