WORLD SOCIALIST WEB SITE
25 years ago: Bentalha massacre in Algeria
On September 22 and 23, 1997, between 200 and 400 civilians were slaughtered in the Algerian town of Bentalha, most of them women and children. The Armed Islamic Group of Algeria (AIG) claimed responsibility for the attack, as it had the Rais massacre of August 29, 1997, in which hundreds were murdered.
The massacres unfolded in the context of the civil war between Islamic fundamentalist guerrillas and the Algerian military regime, which had intensified late that summer. The regime had touched off the fighting by canceling the 1992 parliamentary elections after fundamentalist candidates of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) appeared likely to win. Islamic militia, including the AIG, took up arms in response to the military’s usurpation.
While the AIG had carried out widespread killings, targeting intellectuals, journalists, and secular political figures, as well as workers and peasants, security forces and paramilitary units were believed to be engaged in massacres as well. Witnesses reported that official armed forces were positioned outside of Bentalha and did nothing to stop the brutal murders, even preventing those from neighboring villages from entering to assist the victims during the attack, which lasted roughly six hours.
World Socialist Web Site for more