The bloody three-day hostage standoff at a Sahara natural gas plant took a dramatic turn Friday as Algeria’s state news service reported that nearly 100 of the 132 foreign workers kidnapped by Islamic militants had been freed. Also, the agency cited a source reporting that twelve hostages have been killed since the army launched its operation against the militants at the remote gas complex.
“As well as the 18 terrorists who were killed, 12 Algerian and foreign workers died,” said the source, cited by Algeria’s APS news agency, without giving any more details about the nationality or number of foreign casualties.
That number of hostages at the remote desert facility was significantly higher than any previous report, and still meant that the fate of over 30 foreign energy workers was unclear. Yet it could indicate a potential breakthrough in the confrontation that began when the militants seized the plant early Wednesday.
The militants, meanwhile, offered to trade two captive American workers for two terror figures jailed in the United States, according to a statement received by a Mauritanian news site that often reports news from North African extremists.
Read more: 18 terrorists, 12 Algerian and foreign workers killed at gas plant: report - The Globe and Mail
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