At least 43 were killed and 38 wounded in a suicide attack on an Algerian gendarmerie training school at Issers, in the Kabylie region, Aug. 19. The attacker drove his explosives-packed car packed to the main entrance to the school as candidates for an entry exam were waiting outside. Civilians as well as police officers were among the victims. “It’s utter carnage,” said the father of one of those killed in the attack. “It’s a catastrophe. May God punish them for the crime they have committed against these youngsters, and their country.” (AlJazeera, Reuters, Aug. 19)
On Aug. 17, 11 soldiers, including a high-ranking officer, and one civilian were killed and 13 others injured in an ambush in a forested region in the eastern province of Skikda. The convoy, led by Lt. Col. Rahmouni Mohammed, activated explosives hidden in the road. When it halted, waiting insurgents opened fire with rocket launchers. Four of the attackers also died. (Xinhua, Aug. 19)
See our last post on Algeria.
Second day of terror in Algeria
Two car bombs in Bouira, 90 kilometers southeast of Algiers, killed 12 people and wounded 42 on Aug. 20. Canadian engineering and construction firm SNC-Lavalin Group said 12 of its Algerian employees were killed when a bus carrying them to work on a water project was hit by an explosion. In the second attack, a car bomber drove into a military barracks. The attacks came as authorities raised the death toll from the previous day’s blasts to 48. (Reuters, Aug. 20)