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| Africa North |
| Algeria Launches Offensive Against Salafists |
| 2006-12-05 |
| The Algerian military has launched an offensive against Al Qaida-aligned insurgents. The Algerian military has sent ground and air units in the mountains in the southern region in an effort to dislodge forces of the Salafist Brigade for Combat and Call. Security sources said military units have been operating in the regions of Batna and Biskra, about 400 kilometers southeast of Algiers. The sources said the offensive was launched in wake of a series of Salafist strikes. In the latest attack on Nov. 21, a Salafist unit fired an anti-aircraft missile that downed a military helicopter in Batna. On Nov. 30, the Algerian daily Al Khaber reported that 10 Salafist operatives have been killed so far in the military operation. The newspaper said the military clashed with Salafist fighters twice over the last week. |
| Posted by:Fred |