Algeria Army Says 37 'Terrorists' Killed Since January

The Algerian army said on Sunday that 37 "terrorists" have been killed in operations since January, an announcement that came one day after over a dozen soldiers were killed in an ambush attack north of Algiers. 



"The army has managed since January 2014 to kill 37 terrorists, 22 of which during March," said a press statement by the Algerian Defense Ministry.



"The armed forces were also able to retrieve over 46 machine guns, including 26 Kalashnikovs," the statement added.



Earlier on Sunday, three Algerian soldiers succumbed to injuries they had sustained from a Saturday ambush attack on their patrol in the northern Tizi Ouzou province, bringing the death toll from the attack to 14, according to the state-run APS news agency.



Provinces east of Algiers are thought to be strongholds for militants associated with the Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb group.



Experts say that the group's leader, Abdelmalek Droukdel, otherwise known as Abu Musab Abdel Wadoud, is leading operations against security forces in the area.



No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which came only one day after preliminary results showed incumbent President Abdelaziz Bouteflika as the winner of Thursday's polls.



Some 220 militants were killed in Algeria between January and November of last year, according to unofficial tallies by the independent Commission for Truth, Peace and Reconciliation.



By Abderrazek Ben Abdullah



englishnews@aa.com.tr - Alger