Gourdel assassination: “Algeria vows to crush terrorist organization and France calls for revenge”
Algerian ANP forces have expanded their search through the mountainous region of eastern Kabylia where a newly-formed extremist group claiming allegiance to the Syria-based Islamic State group beheaded a French hiker the day before.
The extremists allied with the so-called Islamic State group have decapitated the French hostage after France carried out airstrikes in Iraq, according to a video that appeared online Wednesday.
French President Francois Hollande condemned the killing of Herve Gourdel and said France would continue its fight against the Islamic State terrorist group, made up of ultra-radicals that have taken over large swathes of Iraq and Syria.
French President Francois Hollande, meanwhile, held a special defense meeting Thursday about Paris’ role in fighting the Islamic State group, and vowed afterward, “This crime will not remain unpunished”.
Algeria has also vowed to find those behind the murder and promised to protect foreign nationals on its soil.
A communal guard from a village just a dozen kilometers where Herve Gourdel was kidnapped and a veteran of many such operations in the mountainous Kabylie region, said the rough terrain will hamper the search.
The Algerian military said a massive search operation to track down the “cowardly criminals” was underway and would continue until “they were totally eliminated and the country was purified of their abject acts.”
For its part, the Algerian government reiterated its firm commitment last night to protecting foreign residents living inside the country.
The European Union condemned the “barbaric murder” and declared itself “more than ever united” in the fight against the scourge of terrorism.
The main French Muslim organisation in France declared itself “horrified” by Gourdel’s execution.
Gourdel was seized Sunday while hiking in the Djurdjura mountains of eastern Algeria, a beautiful region of soaring peaks.
He came to Algeria at the invitation of friends and had gone hiking with five Algerian companions, four of whom were from this region.