Al-Qaida-linked group blamed for Sahara desert kidnappings
A group linked to al-Qaida was behind the Sahara Desert kidnapping of 17 European tourists who were free today after more than two months in custody, the Algerian army said.
Officers said the Salafist Group for Call and Combat had seized the tourists as they trekked across the vast desert.
It was the first time any Algerian officials have acknowledged the tourists were abducted since their disappearance in mid-February.
Algerian media said nine hostage-takers were killed in a commando raid yesterday about 1,200 miles south of the capital Algiers.
The clash lasted several hours, with army units exchanging fire with about 10 hostage-takers wielding assault rifles, according to El Watan newspaper.
The army found the two groups of hostage-takers and their captives – a total of about 45 people – using reconnaissance planes equipped with thermal vision gear, the report said.
Another 15 European tourists were believed to remain in the hands of hostage-takers in the southern Illizi region, El Watan said, but one German official said all 32 hostages had been freed.
Algerian reports have said three Saudi envoys of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden met a top leader of the Salafist Group for Call and Combat in December.
The Algerian group, known by the French-language acronym GSPC, is on a US blacklist of terror organisations.
The group, headed by Hassan Hattab, is one of two main insurgency movements that have continued their fight to topple Algeria’s military-backed government and install an Islamic state.
The missing tourists included 16 Germans, 10 Austrians, four Swiss, one Dutch and a Swede.
There had been few details about the disappearances because of conflicting reports from Algerian officials.
The travellers vanished starting in mid-February on a trip through the region in seven separate groups.
They were driving 4X4 vehicles or motorcycles. None had hired guides.
No group claimed responsibility for their disappearance. Most were last seen near the Libya
