Algiers, Algeria – An insurgency group that has aligned itself with al-Qaeda claimed responsibility late Monday for a deadly attack on employees of an affiliate of the U.S. company Halliburton, saying it was a “gift to all Muslims.”
Assailants hurled a bomb and shot at two vehicles transporting employees Sunday evening in the town of Bouchaoui, 9 miles west of Algiers. The Interior Ministry said the Algerian driver of one bus was killed and nine other people were hurt, including one American, four Britons, one Canadian, a Lebanese and another Algerian.
It was the first time in recent memory that Americans have been targeted in Algeria. The attack threatened to stain the North African nation’s international security image just as it is enjoying an oil boom and increased foreign investment after a bloody insurgency that racked Algeria in the 1990s.
In the wake of the attack, the U.S. Embassy issued a security warning and other embassies and foreign companies were considering tightening security for their staff.
The Salafist Group for Call and Combat, known by its French acronym GSPC, claimed responsibility for the attack. The group is considered the only well-organized insurgency movement still operating in Algeria and has threatened to target foreign interests.
“We carried out this raid as a gift to all Muslims who are suffering from the new Crusader campaign targeting Islam and its holy places,” the group said in a statement. The claim’s authenticity could not be independently confirmed.
