Algeria: death toll rises to 67
- 00:01:56
- ITN
Algeria: death toll rises to 67
At least 67 people have been killed and scores injured by two suicide car bombings which targeted UN offices in the Algerian capital.The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says it has no doubt the UN was the target. The blasts are being blamed on al-Qaeda's north Africa wing.At least one UN worker has been confirmed dead and there could be people trapped in the rubble of the buildings, Geneva-based UNHCR spokesman Ron Redmond said.The offices of the UNHCR and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) were badly damaged.Reports said panicked people ran through the streets when the first blast occurred as the wail of police sirens filled the air.Several of the casualties in the Ben Aknoun district were students travelling on a school bus.A body lay on the road covered with a white blanket, two buses were burning, debris from damaged cars was strewn across pavements while police struggled to hold back onlookers.Student Mohamed Selnani said: "I was nearby when I heard a huge explosion. I am fed up with this situation."A shop worker said: "I want to call my family, but it is impossible. The network is jammed. I know they are very concerned as I work near by the council."Algeria is recovering from more than a decade of violence that began in 1992 when the then army-backed government scrapped elections that a radical Islamic party was poised to win.The violence has subsided since the 1990s but rebels aligned with al-Qaeda have carried out a string of attacks this year, including suicide bombings in the capital in April that killed 33 people.© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.
ITN | December 11, 2007
