Algerian Forces Kill Suspected Muslim Rebels

Government forces killed eight suspected Algerian rebels in clashes in the capital and the mountains, newspapers reported Wednesday.

Most of the deaths came when troops battled a band of Muslim militants Saturday in the mountain town of Djebel Mokournou, about 110 miles south of the capital Algiers, said the independent French-language daily El Watan.

Another suspected militant was killed Tuesday in Algiers in a shootout with security forces, the Liberte newspaper reported.

There have been 15 raids against militants this month as the military-backed government follows up on promises to crush the bloody five-year insurgency that has killed more than 60,000 people. The Islamic insurgents have killed more than 500 people since early June.

Muslim militants have been fighting to overthrow the government since the army canceled 1992 parliamentary elections that militant Islamic parties were poised to win.

In other violence, one person was killed and 11 injured after a bomb exploded Tuesday outside a cheese shop in Sidi Bel Abbes, 270 miles east of Algiers, the independent El Watan newspaper reported.