ALGERIA'S ruthless Armed Islamic Group (GIA) said in a statement yesterday it had begun a new wave of killings in the country's cities and villages.
The GIA leader, Mr Antar Zouabri, also said Algerian forces had started a second offensive against the GIA's main mountainous stronghold on February 19th after an earlier operation against it "failed".
Mr Zouabri, quoted by the London based at Ha'at Arabic newspaper, said: "A new stage of fighting with the government has started with the killing of the apostates and their relatives in cities and villagers and bombings in the hearts of Algiers and Blida."
Algiers and the nearby garrison town of Blida regions bore the brunt of a series of bomb attacks and massacres during the past month, coinciding largely with Ramadan. Mr Zouabri had reportedly promised to step up killings against "all [those] who are not with us".
Over the past few days suspected Muslim guerrillas have killed 12 people, including five members of one family, Algerian newspapers reported yesterday. The five, including twin sisters aged 22, had their throats slit on Friday night in Laghouat, 340 km south of Algiers.
Besides the GIA the main other rebel group is Algeria's Islamic Salvation Army - armed wing of the outlawed Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) - which said last week it had killed over 180 security force members recently.
About 60,000 people have been killed in Algeria's violence since early 1992 when the authorities cancelled a general election in which the FIS, later banned, had taken a huge lead.
Mr Zouabri's latest statement, dated February 22nd and quoted by al Hayat, said paratroopers, backed by tanks, had attacked the GIA stronghold in mountainous Chrea, overlooking Blida.
It said: "as the January 16 offensive failed, the security forces renewed the attack on February 19 which was supervised by Lieutenant General Mohamed Larnari. Artillery and gunships took part in bombarding the area where helicopters carried out four attacks," said the statement. It gave no further details.
Last week, security forces in simultaneous operations in Medea and Chrea regions killed 60 guerrillas, said El Watan newspaper on Sunday, quoting what it called reliable sources.