ALGIERS, Algeria — Two convicted terrorists who had been freed in an amnesty carried out the suicide bombings at U.N. and government buildings that killed 37 people, an Algerian security official said Thursday.
One of the bombers was a 64-year-old man in the advanced stages of cancer, while the other was a 32-year-old from a poor suburb that has produced many Islamic militants, the security official said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.
The government has offered amnesties to try to end a 15-year Islamic insurgency, resulting in thousands of militants turning themselves in, but sparking fierce criticism from the families of victims.
Al-Qaeda’s self-styled North African branch has claimed responsibility for the twin truck bombings Tuesday, which came 10 minutes apart.
At a militant website, al-Qaeda in Islamic North Africa posted photos of two men it said were the bombers. Both posed with weapons and wore camouflage, with the younger man smiling.
