April 14, 2007:
Operations against
terrorists, mostly in the countryside, have left 33 dead so far this month. The
government suspected that the terrorists were planning urban attacks, because
that had been the recent pattern in nearby Morocco. But it was thought that the
terrorists were having a hard time operating in populated areas, because so
many people were willing to report terrorist activity. The government thought
it had reduced the terrorist forces to several hundred hiding out in rural
areas, where constant patrols still produced several clashes a month. The
bombings in the capital make it clear that Algerian Islamic radicals have
indeed switched from their previous tactics of rural attacks, to the al Qaeda
method of going for more newsworthy events in big cities. The latest attacks
had the desired impact on international media, but made Islamic radicals even
more unpopular inside Algeria. The senior Islamic cleric in the country
condemned the attacks, and the Islamic terrorists behind them. By playing to
the media, with urban attacks against civilians, al Qaeda increased their
popularity among Moslems in countries where there is no Islamic terrorism
(including Europe), but made themselves very unpopular in countries suffering
the attacks. From a strategic point of view, this makes no sense. But terrorist
bombings are not a path to victory, but a desperate ploy to try and avoid the
destruction of your movement. And the media loves it. Nothing better than a
spectacular disaster, carried out by a sinister organization that threatens to
do it again and again. Best of all, the bad guys can never take over, because
their terrorism angers the very people they depend on for shelter and
support.
Some Algerians suspect that the April 11 bombings
were carried out by the government. Widespread corruption in the government is
still the source of much public anger. More al Qaeda terrorism in the cities
increases support for the government. It's unlikely that the attacks were a
government set up, as many of the victims were government employees, and al
Qaeda was quick to take credit.
April 13, 2007: The family of one of April
11's suicide car bomb attacks, has condemned the operation. This is in sharp
contrast to such situations in other parts of the world, where the
suicide attackers family is praised, and the family in turn supports the terrorist
act of their loved one. No such love here, and that's part of major differences
between Islamic terrorism in Algeria and elsewhere. Most Algerians have had it
with Islamic terrorism, which has killed over 200,000 Algerians in the last 15
years. Even with this weeks deaths, the violence levels are way down.
April 11, 2007: Two car bombs went off in the
capital, killing 33 and wounding over 200. The bombs were set off near
government buildings. A third car bomb was later found and disarmed.
April 10, 2007: In Casablanca, Morocco, three
suicide bombers set off their explosives, while a fourth was killed by police
before he could do so. The four terrorists were cornered in their hideout, and
refused to be taken alive. The police caught this group as part of a crackdown
brought on by a terrorist bombing last month that killed several dozen people.
Since then, several thousand people have been arrested. Morocco has long had
Islamic terrorists active, but not that many. The terrorists are unable to
carry out more than one or two attacks a year. Many have fled to Europe and
Pakistan where they plot additional attacks.
April 8, 2007: In western Algeria, some three
dozen terrorists ambushed an army patrol. Several hours of fighting left nine
soldiers and six terrorists dead.