Algerian forces kill four Islamist fighters - ministry

Algerian troops killed four Islamist gunmen west of the capital on Friday, the defence ministry said, adding they were part of a group who left nine soldiers dead in an ambush last year. A ministry statement cited by state news agency APS said the four were "neutralized" in Ain Defla province and arms, munitions and grenades were recovered. Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed responsibility for that attack, also in Ain Defla.