AN ALGERIAN army offensive using helicopters and ground troops in the rugged north east region of Tamesguida killed more than 60 Muslim rebels, according to an Algerian newspaper report.
Army helicopters fired at guerrillas holed up in hilly forest 65 km south west of Algiers and troops moved in at the weekend to kill more than 60 rebels in their hideouts, Liberte reported yesterday.
Tamesguida is a stronghold of Islamic militants in Medea province. Rebels stormed an army barracks in Tamesguida in 1993 killing at least 22 soldiers by cutting their throats. Rebels also slaughtered 12 Croatian workers there the same year.
Liberte said the operation was part of an offensive to wipe out guerrillas. The authorities blame the guerrillas for killing more than 300 people in Algiers and neighbouring towns and villages in the past month.
Security forces killed seven guerrillas on Friday when they stormed a rebel hideout in Cherarba, 40 km south of Algiers, the newspaper said. The army conducted more operations in the mountains of Grande Kabylie, east of Algiers, at Maatkas, Mechtras, Ouadhias and Takhoukht.
More than 170 guerrillas have been killed, according to Algerian reports, since January 24th when President Liamine Zeroual vowed to wipe out the guerrillas. About 60,000 people have been killed since 1992 when the Algerian authorities cancelled a general election in which radical Islamists had taken a lead.