Terrorism

The White House is seeking clarity on the situations; some leaders criticize Algeria's government.

The State Department is warning Americans across western Africa about the heightened risk of terrorism and kidnappings in the wake of a U.S.-backed French intervention in Mali and the related hostage crisis in Algeria.

Al Qaeda linked militants in Algeria say they're holding several people, including two Americans, hostage at a natural-gas plant near the Libyan border. They've threatened to execute them if France does not cease its operation to dislodge militants in northern Mali. 

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has asked “that security in the entire region be reviewed in light of this,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Thursday. “That goes not only for official American security but also the messages that we're giving to American citizens and American businesses. So that's under way now.”

The comments come after the State Department issued a travel warning for Niger, Mali's eastern border, on Wednesday. The warning urges “extreme caution due to the military conflict in neighboring Mali and continued kidnapping threats against Westerners in Niger.”

It remains unclear if any Americans were killed when Algerian air forces attacked the holed-up militants Thursday. 

An Algerian security official says 20 foreign hostages, including some Americans, have escaped Islamic militants, the AP is reporting.

Defense secretary says the kidnappings by al-Qaeda affiliated extremists may be retaliation for French counterterrorism offensive in West Africa. 

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta promised Wednesday to take “all necessary and proper steps” after Algerian Islamists took several Americans hostage in the latest foreign-policy crisis to rock the administration.

Two groups linked to al Qaeda — the “Masked Brigade” and “Signers in Blood” — claimed responsibility for what the White House has dubbed a terrorist attack on a gas field near the Libyan border. The groups called the raid retaliation for France's U.S.-backed intervention in neighboring Mali. The groups said they'd captured 400 hostages, including seven Americans and 33 other Westerners.

The Obama administration confirmed the circumstance of American hostages but did not say how many there were. The embassy earlier in the day issued a statement saying there had been no U.S. casualties. Read more...

Obama informed Congress that the U.S. provided "limited" support for an unsuccessful French mission in Somalia to free a hostage.

The decision is controversial because the PLO just obtained observer state status at the U.N.

Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) on Tuesday reiterated his call for the Obama administration to cut aid to Tunisia after authorities there released a suspect in the Sept. 11 Benghazi Consulate attack.

State spokeswoman Victoria Nuland confirmed Clinton is expected to appear before both chambers before the confirmation hearing for her replacement.