Algerian Rebels Claim Planting Bombs in France
A statement in the name of Algeria’s Armed Islamic Group received Saturday said its fighters carried out bombings in France and vowed that it would press on with the attacks.
“We are continuing today . . . our holy struggle and military strikes, and this time in the heart of France and its largest cities, to prove that nothing will stand in our way as long as our actions are for the sake of Allah,” the statement read.
Dated Sept. 23 and signed by rebel leader Abu Abderrahmane Amine, the statement was faxed to an international news agency in Cairo. Its authenticity could not be confirmed.
France has been the target of several bomb attacks that have killed seven people and wounded more than 130 since July.
French officials have blamed the rebel group for waging the bombing campaign to press France, the former ruler of Algeria, to halt its support for Algeria’s army-backed government.
The Armed Islamic Group is the most ruthless of the militant Muslim groups locked in a nearly 4-year-old conflict with the authorities in Algeria.
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