Algerians and citizens of other countries taken hostage in In Amenas. . Photo: Ennahar TV / AFP

The bodies of 25 dead hostages were found on Sunday, January 20, during the clearing of the gas field in In Amenas, which was held by Islamists. This was reported by Reuters with reference to the Algerian channel Ennahar.

The bodies of those killed were found inside the gas processing plant in In Amenas. Earlier, Algerian authorities announced 23 dead hostages, but did not specify their nationality, nor did they say whether their bodies had been found. It subsequently turned out that about 30 foreigners who worked in In Amenas were missing. Soon after, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced that at least six Britons had died in Algeria.

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According to Agence France-Presse , at least nine Japanese were among the dead. Earlier, representatives of the Japanese JGC Corporation, whose employees were taken hostage, stated that it did not know the fate of 17 of its employees: 10 Japanese and seven foreigners.

The natural gas field near In Amenas was developed by the British concern BP together with the Norwegian company Statoil and the Algerian Sonatrach. Islamists captured the facility and the people there on January 16. On January 19, as a result of an operation by the Algerian military and special forces, the militants were destroyed and the surviving hostages were freed.

The militants said the attack on the facility was in response to Algeria's assistance to the French army supporting the government in the fight against Islamists in Mali. According to official data, 32 militants were killed during the assault on the In Amenas field. The attackers were members of the Battalion of Blood Signers, which is affiliated with the Al-Qaeda terrorist network.

Bodies of 25 hostages found in Algeria