Algeria: Military killed 99 suspected extremists in 2016

Published July 17th, 2016 - 07:00 GMT
Tunisia military hunting 'armed groups' near Algeria border. (AFP/File)
Tunisia military hunting 'armed groups' near Algeria border. (AFP/File)

Algerian troops killed 99 extremists in the first half of this year, the army said Saturday.

The fatalities included 26 militants killed last month, the July edition of the army's magazine reported.

The government usually refers to radical Islamists as "terrorists."

Fifty other suspects have been detained in the first six months of 2016, according to the publication.

Military forces have also seized a big cache of arms during swoops in different parts of the country during that period.

The seized weaponry included Kalashnikov rifles, machine guns, rocket launchers, bombs, mortars and explosive belts.

In recent months, the North African country has stepped up its crackdown on suspected militants as neighbouring Tunisia is grappling with Islamist insurgents.

An estimated 200,000 people were killed in a conflict between the Algerian government and Islamists in the 1990s.

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