At least 60 hostages and 11 members of an al-Qaeda-affiliated group were killed when Algerian forces stormed a desert gas plant to free the captives, drawing international attention to al-Qaeda in North Africa.
Eight Algerians and seven foreigners, including two British, two Japanese and a French national, were among the dead, an Algerian security source said.
The military says some of the gunmen who took hundreds of hostages at the gas facility, are still holed up inside. Nine foreign nationals were released but the fate of a number of those who had been held by the fighters remains unclear. The hostages included Algerians, as well as foreigners from at least nine countries – including the US, Britain and Japan.
At least 22 hostages are still missing – eight from Norway and 14 from Japan.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe cut short a visit to Indonesia on Friday, reports said, to fly home and deal with the hostage crisis in Algeria in which numerous Japanese are caught up.
The Japanese government criticised the Algerian army for the bloody end to the hostage crisis.
Japan’s foreign ministry also summoned the Algerian ambassador demanding answers over the rescue operation
Yoshihide Suga, the Chief Cabinet Secretary, said: “There is still much confusion in the information but we are receiving reports of casualties. “We deeply regret the actions taken by the Algerian military.” Communication Minister Mohamed Said said troops had been forced to act after talks with the kidnappers failed. He said many fighters had been killed in the operation at the In Amenas gas field.