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Algerian troops kill 5 foreign "criminals" near border with Niger

04 October 2014 02:20 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Algerian army on Thursday killed five foreign individuals near the border with Niger, Algeria's Defense Ministry said on Friday, according to the official APS news agency, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

In a statement, the defense ministry said the army "ambushed a group of foreign criminals in the locality of Tiririne, near the border with Niger, as five of them were killed and four others injured."

The statement has not specified whether these "criminals" are militants or traffickers, noting that two vehicles belonging to these individuals were destroyed.

The ministry added that the detectives have launched an investigation to identify the killed and injured individuals, who are all foreign nationalities.

In 2013, Algeria closed its borders with Mali and Niger, following security reports warning of infiltration of militants into its territory. Thousands of troops have been deployed along Algeria's southern borderline to thwart potential attacks of armed groups based in Mali and Niger.