This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21042659

The article has changed 20 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 8 Version 9
Foreigners abducted by Islamist militants in Algeria Foreigners abducted by Islamist militants in Algeria
(35 minutes later)
Two foreigners have been killed, including a British national, and several others abducted in an attack on a gas facility near In Amenas in eastern Algeria, state media say. Two foreign nationals, one of them British, have been killed and several abducted in an attack by Islamist militants on a gas facility in eastern Algeria, state media report.
Islamist militants allied to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) have said they carried out the attack. Several people were also wounded when a bus carrying workers from a gas facility near In Amenas was targeted.
They claim to have seized six people. Their nationalities are unclear. After being repelled, the militants travelled to the facility, taking an unknown number of workers hostage.
The oil giant BP says a gas field it runs in partnership with Norwegians and Algerians was attacked. Militants linked to al-Qaeda claim to have kidnapped at least six people.
Six people, including two foreigners, are reported to have been injured in the raid. One alleged spokesman told two Mauritanian news websites that they were holding 41 foreigners, including US, French, British and Japanese citizens.
The state-run APS news agency cited local officials as saying a British national was one of the two people who had died. The hostages' nationalities are not yet known, but security sources have said they include four Japanese, a Frenchman, a Norwegian and an Irish citizen.
The UK foreign office earlier said it could only confirm that British nationals had been "caught up in a terrorist incident" and that the British embassy in Algiers was liaising with the local authorities. It did not say how many people were affected. The In Amenas gas field is operated by the state-owned corporation Sonatrach, along with the British oil company BP and Norway's Statoil.
Irish Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore said an Irish national had been abducted, adding that his government was "ready to use all the resources available to us to ensure that our citizen is released as soon as possible". The attack came after militants vowed to avenge France's military intervention in Mali, where its forces have been battling Islamists linked to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). Algeria has been allowing French aircraft to use its air space.
A Japanese contractor at gas facility, JGC Corp, says Japanese staff have been seized, according to Japanese media. 'Undetermined number'
The wife of a Norwegian gas worker also told a newspaper that he was among those seized. The Algerian interior ministry said a heavily-armed "terrorist group" using three vehicles had attacked the bus carrying workers from the In Amenas gas field at about 05:00 (04:00 GMT).
"I received a phone call from my husband this morning and he said he had been kidnapped," the unnamed woman was quoted as saying by the Bergens Tidende. The attack was "repelled by the escort units", but one foreign national was killed and six people - two foreigners, two police and two security personnel - were wounded, a statement said.
Early reports said five Japanese nationals and a Frenchman had been seized, but a Western diplomat told the French news agency AFP those abducted included British and Norwegian staff. The group then drove directly to the base and took hostage an "undetermined number of workers, including foreign nationals", the interior ministry added.
The Algerian army has begun an operation to recover the hostages. Later, the state-run APS news agency cited local officials as saying two foreigners had been killed in the attack, one of them a British national. A local source earlier told the Reuters news agency a Frenchman had died.
The In Amenas gas field is a joint operation by BP, the Algerian state oil company, Sonatrach, and the Norwegian state energy firm, Statoil. The Algerian military has reportedly launched an operation to rescue the hostages and surrounded the gas workers' camp at Tiguentourine.
The attack comes as French ground forces are preparing to engage Islamist militants in Algeria's southern neighbour, Mali. Initial reports said five Japanese nationals and a Frenchman had been kidnapped, but a Western diplomat told the French news agency AFP those abducted included British and Norwegian staff.
Algeria has been allowing French aircraft to use its air space to attack targets in Mali. The UK's foreign office said it could confirm that British nationals had been "caught up in a terrorist incident" and that the embassy in Algiers was liaising with the local authorities. It did not say how many were affected.
The Khaled Abul Abbas Brigade said it had carried out the attack, and had travelled from northern Mali to conduct the operation. Irish Foreign Minister Eamon Gilmore said one of its nationals had been abducted, adding that his government was "ready to use all the resources available to us to ensure that our citizen is released as soon as possible".
The militants are led by Mokhtar Belmokhtar, who used to be a senior commander of AQIM before setting up his own armed Islamist group last year after an apparent fallout with other militant leaders. A Japanese contractor at the In Amenas gas facility, JGC Corp, confirmed that Japanese staff had been seized, according to Japanese media.
Islamist militants in the region have in recent years seized a number of foreigners, mainly in Mali. Eight French nationals are currently being held across the region. The wife of a Norwegian gas worker was quoted as saying by the Bergens Tidende newspaper as saying: "I received a phone call from my husband this morning and he said he had been kidnapped."
BP confirmed that there had been a "security incident".
"The site was attacked and occupied by a group of unidentified armed people," a statement said. "Contact with the site is extremely difficult, but we understand that armed individuals are still occupying the In Amenas operations site."
An earlier statement said the company had "activated its emergency response system" and was setting up a helpline for relatives.
Warning
A man claiming to be a spokesman for the militants told BBC Arabic that al-Qaeda had carried out the attack.
He claimed that they had allowed Algerian workers to leave the gas facility and were only holding foreign nationals.
A list of demands had been sent to the Algerian authorities, and the hostages would be killed if troops attempted to rescue them, the spokesman added.
''Storming the gas complex would be easy for the Algerian military, but the outcome of such an operation would be disastrous," he warned.
Earlier, a group known as the Khaled Abu al-Abbas Brigade told the AFP news agency that it had kidnapped the workers.
The Khaled Abu al-Abbas Brigade is believed to be led by Mokhtar Belmokhtar - also known as Abu al-Abbas - who was a senior commander of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb before late last year, when he set up his own armed group after apparently falling out with other leaders.
His new group is also known as the Signed-in Blood Battalion, a spokesman for whom told the Mauritanian Sahara Media website that it had "captured 41 Westerners, including seven Americans, two French citizens, two British citizens and two Japanese".