The crisis in Algeria has become one of the worse hostage crises in history. Today, Jan. 21, 2013, Al Jazeera reported, Death toll climbs in Algeria hostage crisis. A security official has said that the death toll from the siege at a natural gas plant in the Sahara has climbed past 80 as Algerian forces searching the refinery for explosives found dozens more bodies. Many of the bodies were so badly disfigured it was unclear whether they were hostages or rebel fighters.
On Saturday Algerian special forces stormed the plant to end the tense four-day siege. Government officials have said this was all part of a plot by the Islamic extremists to blow up the complex and kill all their captives with mines spread throughout the site. After Saturday's assault by government forces Algeria said that at least 32 rebels and 23 hostages were killed. On Sunday, Algerian bomb squads, which were sent in to blow up or defuse the explosives, found 25 more bodies.
As this crisis has widened, ABC News has confirmed seven Japan nationals have been among those killed. The shocking impact of this tragedy has been highlighted by its surprise nature. The Japan Times has reported, JGC called Algeria 'calm' in 2011 report. The Japanese firm that helped to build the remote Saharan gas plant which is at the center of Algeria's bloody hostage crisis, once told investors the country was a haven of stability as unrest swept through the region. JGC wrote in its 2011 annual report, "JGC has ongoing projects in Algeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi. As these countries have not experienced noticeable disorder, our projects have proceeded steadily without being affected."
