Algeria regrets killing of French hostage in Sahel

Algeria regrets the killing by terrorists of the French hostage Michel Germaneau retained in the Sahelian region since April, Algerian Foreign Minister Mourad Medelci said Tuesday, Algerian APS press agency reported.

"The Algerian position is very clear, we are against terrorism in general and hostage taking in particular," Medelci said in a statement to reporters on the sidelines of the 15th Ordinary Session of Heads of State and Government of the African Union (AU) held in the Ugandan capital of Kampala on July 25 to 27.

"We regret, like all other countries, what happened in Mali in recent days, and our position is clear on this issue," said the Algerian minister, stressing that "Algeria, like any other country in the AU, is determined to fight against this practice."

Medelci said that the consequences of that act on the security situation in the Sahel region, especially north of Mali, will " reinforces the countries of the region in a position to continue to work together."

Regarding any possible action by the African Union in the Sahel region, as is the case in Somalia, Medelci said that "We are Africans and the African Union is interested in the Sahel area. For now, the countries of the region are taking charge of their own security," he said.

Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) said in a statement on Sunday that they have killed French hostage Michel Germaneau, a 78- year-old aid worker who was seized in Niger where he had been building a school on April 19.

Source: Xinhua