Today, the Algerian government attacked the
Tigantourine natural gas facility near In Aménas,
Algeria, where employees had been being held hostage by Islamist militants since
early Wednesday. Many of the hostages were from foreign countries such as the
United States, Britain, the Philippines, and Japan. An Algerian security source
claims that thirty hostages and at least eleven Islamist militants were killed in the attack; however, as the original number of employees held hostage were
unknown, the validity of these numbers are still yet to be determined. A senior
U.S. defense official stated that at least two American employees safely
escaped, but others are still missing.
The reportedly al Qaeda-linked Islamist rebels most
likely abducted the gas complex and its employees as an act of retaliation
against the French intervention in neighboring Mali.
Governments of the foreign countries whose citizens
are involved in the hostage crisis have complained about Algeria’s lack of
notification before the attack. Both Great Britain’s and the United State’s
offers to aid in the releasing of the hostages were declined by the Algerian
government on Wednesday. Because the government has a “history of violent suppression of Islamist militancy,” concerns are being raise over whether the
attack was unnecessarily brutal and deathly.
This global conflict has had negative economic effects as well--as a country rich in oil, Algeria and its hostage crisis has caused the price of oil to increase from $1.08 to $95.32 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
What do you think of the Algerian government’s
decision not to inform other countries before attacking the gas complex and the
lack of information regarding the current state of the hostages?
1 comment:
First off, I hope that most of the hostages got away safely despite the attack. Looking at the various conflicting sources, I agree that we should not jump to conclusions yet but I would go with the US's report for now.
Unfortunately, Algeria chose not to accept the help of Britain or America. I feel that since some of the hostages are from foreign countries, which are more powerful than Algeria itself, they should have discussed the attack with them. I am not sure why the Algerians refused help from us. Some speculate the dark possibility that the Algerian government wanted to violently wipe out the Islamists without worrying about innocent casualties. A few sources say that if the US and GB were not overseeing the operation, then Algeria could just claim that the hostages were already dead by the time they got there. However, other sources say that Algeria never accepts help and is stubborn about such issues. Overall, I feel the Algerian government's decision not to inform America or Britain showed great disrespect toward those nations as well as the hostages.
The oil issue only adds more fire to the fuel. The Algerian crisis will probably cause our gas prices to rise up sometime soon. I am interested, however, if any significant damage came to the natural gas facility itself due to the attack.
Until more information comes out from the Algerian government, the consequences of their actions will not yet be fully known. But this has not stopped other nations from voicing their concerns.
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