Five civilians killed in Algeria bomb blast, three wounded

ALGIERS: A homemade bomb killed five civilians and wounded three others in eastern Algeria on Thursday, the defence ministry said, the deadliest attack targeting civilians in recent years.

The roadside bomb went off as a car drove by in the region of Tebessa, the ministry said in a statement.

“Five citizens died and three others were wounded when a homemade bomb exploded as their car drove in Oueid KhenigRoum, near the district of Telidjane in Tebessa prefecture,” it said. It gave no other details on the attack itself.

The same statement did note that a jihadist was killed by troops in the neighbouring region of Khenchela, but it was not immediately clear if the two incidents were related.

“Following an ambush in Oued Boudekhane... in Khenchela prefecture, a detachment of the People’s National Armed Forces shot dead... a dangerous terrorist,” the statement said.

A machine gun, ammunition, and cell phones as well as a radio transmitter were recovered during the operation, the defence ministry said, adding that the operation was still ongoing.

President Abdelmadjid Tebboune denounced the attack in Tebessa as a ‘cowardly and barbaric act’.

Tebboune, who has returned to Germany for treatment of postCovid-19 complications, also sent his condolences to the families of the five Algerians killed.

General Said Chengriha, the army’s chief of staff, meanwhile urged Algerians to be ‘vigilant’ and to avoid going to regions considered unsafe. — AFP