ALGERIA: Survivors of the killing sprees that occurred during Algeria's civil war recount their experiences on the eve of a referendum on national reconciliation

Record ID: 574316

  • Title: ALGERIA: Survivors of the killing sprees that occurred during Algeria's civil war recount their experiences on the eve of a referendum on national reconciliation
  • Date: 29th September 2005
  • Summary: VARIOUS OF CHILDREN PLAYING IN THE STREET
  • Embargoed: 14th October 2005 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Algeria
  • Country: Algeria
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement
  • Reuters ID: LVA4CCTQSXL8GCQ09HDVOONMRVOX
  • Story Text: On the eve of Algeria's referendum on national reconciliation, families of victims of one of the worst atrocities in Algeria's civil war remember the horrors of the 1997 massacre at Bin Talha village.
    In Bin Talha, survivors and relatives of victims of the civil war remember the more than 300 people killed on the night of September 22-23 1997.
    Some say the referendum granting a partial amnesty for rebels will deprive them of justice, while others say they hope it will end more than a decade of civil strife. Others say they are still seeking answers to their questions.
    Soad Zafar lost her mother, two brothers and two sisters on the eve of September 22. She says the only reason she survived was because the attackers assumed she was dead as well.
    "They did not take much notice of me. I pretended to be dead. A body fell on me. It was full of blood. It (the body) was my neighbour's. Before they killed him, they tried to convince him to come outside but he did not, so they shot him and he fell over me," says the 26-year-old.
    Witnesses of the Bin Talha massacre say some 50 Armed Islamic Group (GIA) militants attacked their village. They say the attackers used knives, axes and swords to kill, apparently to save ammunition. Many complain that their pleas for help during the four-and-a-half-hour ordeal were ignored by security forces deployed just outside the village.
    Thirteen years of violence that threatened the survival of the state and cost 150,000-200,000 lives broke out when the army cancelled elections that a radical Islamic party -- the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) -- was poised to win in 1992.
    For Foad Threetin, who also lost his mother and two sisters, the referendum might bring an end to the bloodshed once and for all.
    He says he hopes that public backing of the amnesty will convince militants to lay down their arms and surrender.
    "I am with (having) the referendum so that there will not be other massacres in the future. These terrorists should be stopped. I am optimistic. We hope for the best, God willing," he says.
    Although rebel attacks continue, violence has sharply fallen in recent years, bringing back much-needed foreign investment.
    The authorities estimate that 300-400 militants are still active, while security experts say it could be double that figure.
    The amnesty will not include militants involved in massacres, rapes or explosions in public areas.
    Legal proceedings would be dropped against Islamist rebels who have surrendered, and against some still wanted at home and abroad if they hand themselves in.
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