Hostages from at least 9 countries in Algeria

Islamic militants said they have captured 41 foreign hostages at a natural gas complex in the Algerian desert and said later that 35 of them were killed Thursday in Algerian military helicopter strafing.

There was no way to independently confirm the report. Here's a summary of the latest information on the hostages:

? ALGERIA: Hundreds of Algerians worked at the gas plant, but the Algerian media says most have been released. The Norwegian energy company Statoil says three of its Algerian employees are hostages.

? NORWAY: Nine Norwegian employees of Statoil are hostages, the company says.

? UNITED STATES: Seven Americans were hostages, the militants said, but they claimed only two survived the Algerian strafing Thursday. The U.S. has confirmed that some of its citizens are hostages but gave no numbers.

? BRITAIN: "Several" British nationals are among the hostages, the U.K. government says.

? JAPAN: At least three of the hostages are Japanese, according to the Japanese media.

? MALAYSIA: Two Malaysians being held, the government says.

? IRELAND: A 36-year-old Irish man was among the hostages but is now safe and free, according to Ireland's government.

? FRANCE: President Francois Hollande says there are French hostages but gave no exact number.

? ROMANIA: Romania's Foreign Ministry says Romanians are among hostages.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/hostages-least-9-countries-algeria-160840464--finance.html

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