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UPDATE 1-Up to six Britons killed in Algeria, Cameron says

January 20, 2013 06:31
LONDON, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Three British nationals have been confirmed killed during a hostage crisis at a gas plant in Algeria, and a further three Britons along with a resident of Britain are believed to have died, Prime Minister David Cameron said on Sunday. Islamist militants seized the remote compound in the Sahara desert before dawn on Wednesday, taking a large number of hostages. Details are still emerging of what happened when the Algerian army launched an assault to end the siege on Saturday.

WRAPUP 6-Algeria hostage crisis death toll hits 80, could rise further

January 19, 2013 21:00
* Six militants captured alive * Hostage death toll rises to 48 * France, Britain defend Algerian response * Algeria says gas plant to restart in two days By Lamine Chikhi ALGIERS, Algeria, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Algerian troops found 25 bodies of hostages at a bomb-littered gas plant deep in the Sahara desert on Sunday, a day after ending a four-day siege, a security source said, raising the death toll of militants and their captives to at least 80.

UPDATE 1-Obama seeks "fuller understanding" of what happened in Algeria siege

January 19, 2013 21:00
(Adds quotes, details) WASHINGTON, Jan 19 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama offered on Saturday to provide any assistance the Algerian government needs after a deadly hostage siege at a desert gas plant and said the United States was seeking a "fuller understanding" from Algerian authorities of what took place there. "The thoughts and prayers of the American people are with the families of all those who were killed and injured in the terrorist attack in Algeria," Obama said in his first comments on the hostage crisis.

Survivors describe horrors of Algeria desert siege

January 18, 2013 17:30
* Recall two-day ordeal at isolated natural gas plant * Witnessed killings, hid in fear from Islamist militants * Fate of many hostages remains unknown By Lamine Chikhi ALGIERS, Jan 18 (Reuters) - A Frenchman spent a day and two nights in terror, boarded up under his bed, certain he would be found and killed. An Algerian radio operator saw his French supervisor's corpse. A Northern Irish engineer saw four truckloads of other hostages blasted to pieces in an Algerian military strike.

UPDATE 2-UK's Cameron says Britons still at risk in Algeria

January 18, 2013 10:00
* Cameron "disappointed" Algeria gave no warning of rescue * Britons at risk, but number much lower than 30 people * Cameron condemns "savage attack", offers support By Mohammed Abbas LONDON, Jan 18 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Friday he was disappointed Algeria gave him no advance warning of an operation to rescue hostages held in a desert gas facility and warned that Britons caught up in the crisis were still at risk.

UPDATE 2-Two French hostages leave Algerian gas site -govt

January 18, 2013 05:00
* French minister says no news on two other hostages * Cannot say if hostage crisis over, information patchy * Catering worker hid for 40 hours away from kidnappers * 150 Algerian catering employees safe, company says PARIS, Jan 18 (Reuters) - French authorities are in contact with two French hostages who have left the desert gas facility in Algeria where they were being held by Islamist militants, France's Interior Minister Manuel Valls said on Friday.

WRAPUP 9-Foreigners still caught in Sahara hostage crisis

January 18, 2013 00:45
* Thirty hostages, at least seven foreign, killed - source * More than 20 foreigners still held or missing on Friday * Western governments not consulted, Algiers faces questions * 10 Japanese, 8 Norwegians, "less than 30" Britons at risk By Lamine Chikhi and Abdelaziz Boumzar

WRAPUP 1-Algeria ends desert siege, but dozens killed

January 17, 2013 21:00
* Thirty hostages, at least seven foreign, killed -source * Algeria says at least 11 militants dead, only 2 Algerian * Western governments not consulted, Algiers faces questions * Irish hostage says army blew up for jeeps of hostages * Fourteen Japanese among foreigners unaccounted for By Lamine Chikhi

Hostage's family says Algerian army attacked hostage jeeps

January 17, 2013 20:00
By Eamonn Mallie BELFAST, Jan 17 (Reuters) - A hostage who escaped unharmed from Islamist militants in Algeria on Thursday said the Algerian army bombed four jeeps carrying fellow captives and probably killed many of them, his brother told Reuters. Irishman Stephen McFaul, who was among dozens of Western and local captives seized by militants at an Algerian natural gas plant on Wednesday, told his family that he survived because he was on the only one of five jeeps not hit by Algerian bombs, according to his brother Brian.

UPDATE 2-Algeria crisis forces British PM to delay Europe speech

January 17, 2013 16:00
* Cameron warns Britons to expect "bad news" * Not told in advance of Algerian swoop on hostage-takers * PM calls off long-awaited speech on Europe By Michael Holden LONDON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Prime Minister David Cameron postponed on Thursday a much-anticipated speech on Britain's future role in the European Union because of the hostage crisis at an Algerian gas plant where Britons are believed to be among those held.
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