FM: Algerian kidnapped diplomats in Mali alive

Algerian diplomats kidnapped in northern Mali last year are still "alive", Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra said Monday in Algiers. "The Algerian diplomats are alive, according to the latest information we've collected in the few last days," Lamamra told a press conference. "We do not want to go into details, but I'd like to insist that the Algerian state still remains mobilized in a bid to rescue them and help them go back home as soon as possible," the minister added. Algerian vice-consul in Gao city, Tahar Touati, and six other diplomats were kidnapped by the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) on April 5 last year, following the eruption of chaos in northern Mali. In mid-July, the extremist group released three diplomats. On Sept. 1, 2012, a couple of news websites posted a statement presumably issued by MUJAO, which announced the execution of Touati, following the expiration of an ultimatum for the Algerian government to release some militants jailed in Algeria. However, Algeria's Foreign Ministry said there was no further information about the alleged execution.