LONDON — Algeria's swift use of lethal force against militants who seized one of its main gas fields raised concerns in the West but came as no surprise at home and showed clearly how the government would respond to future attacks. By the time special forces had cleared the In Amenas complex at the weekend, nearly 70 hostages and militants lay dead. Some Western leaders seemed unaware of what was happening on the ground, complaining that they had not been consulted about the decision to go in with foreign hostages' lives at stake. For the Algerian leadership, the decision to attack with helicopters, snipers and special forces to tackle insurgents who had threatened to blow up the plant was apparently an easy one and the operation was seen as a success that has boosted the prestige of the armed forces. “We are proud of our army's special forces and the whole world has understood that this reaction was the only possible response,” Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal said. “When the security of the country is at risk, you have to be firm.” That reaction was clearly conditioned by the turbulent recent history of a country that jealously guards its sovereignty and sees those it regards as “terrorists” as a threat that must be snuffed out. And with a war in progress in neighboring Mali, it is a threat that looms larger now. Algeria fought a bitter war of independence against France in the 1950s and an even bloodier civil war against insurgents in the 1990s that cost 200,000 lives. Its leadership is secretive, authoritarian and determined to preserve the state in the face of militantcy. More attacks are likely, but they are expected to be smaller, with foreign workers at risk from shootings and bombings. The security forces will deal with them firmly, said Richard Jackson, Deputy Director of Violent Risk Forecasting at the Exclusive Analysis consultancy. “They are likely to respond in a forceful and rapid way to any future events,” he said. Prime Minister Sellal has been at pains to stress that the problem his country faces is not related to Islam, but to terrorism and banditry. “I particularly call on Arab countries, in order to tell them that we are not facing an Islamic issue, but terrorists and mercenaries,” he said. “We must protect our religion, our civilization, which terrorists are destroying. How can we imagine that such acts are being perpetrated in the name of Islam. These crimes will not be allowed in Algeria.” In the meantime, however, one beneficiary of the In Amenas operation may be the Algerian military, whose political influence could be boosted as the country approaches an election in which it is unclear whether Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in power since 1999, will stand. “The successful military assault has boosted the Algerian army's popularity among the people, which is an important factor 15 months ahead of a presidential election in which the military could play a major role in promoting a candidate,” said an Algerian analyst, who asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the issue. — Reuters
