Algeria: Police checkpoint attacked in Bilda May 31

Event

A checkpoint operated by the Algerian Gendarmerie was attacked by a terrorist group in Oued Slama (Bilda province), 45 km (28 mi) southwest of Algiers, on the evening of Wednesday, May 31. According to local sources, four police officers were injured in the attack. Details regarding the identity of the assailants are unknown but an investigation is ongoing.

Context

Although no major terrorist attacks have occurred in Algeria over the past two years, the threat of terrorism persists and minor attacks targeting security forces do take place, despite the aggressive anti-terrorism campaign led by the military and security services. The threat is particularly high in the Kabylie region and other areas in the Atlas Mountains, a former stronghold of Al-Qa'ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM); the area continues to see intermittent, low-level clashes as security forces work to track and eliminate the several hundred fighters estimated still left in the region

Advice

Due to the risk of terrorism throughout the country, individuals present in Algeria are advised to maintain a high degree of vigilance, to report any suspicious objects or behavior to the relevant authorities, and to be particularly cautious when visiting sites deemed particularly likely to be targeted in an attack (public transportation, train stations, ports, airports, public or government buildings, embassies or consulates, international organizations, schools and universities, religious sites, markets, hotels, and restaurants frequented by foreigners/Westerners, festivals, etc.).

Due to these and other security concerns, a number of Western governments advise against travel to the desert regions of central and southern Algeria, including the entire border with Libya. Only a few large cities (Algiers, Oran, and Tlemncen) should be considered relatively safe thanks to a heavy security presence.