Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos confirmed that a Colombian citizen was among those killed in the attack on a gas plant in southern Algeria last week by Islamic insurgents.
Santos on Saturday strongly condemned the attack which resulted in the death of a Colombian native, Carlos Estrada, one of the 37 hostages killed by a group of Islamist terrorists.
“On this issue I would like to make it very clear: that those responsible for…these deaths, where a Colombian was also killed, are terrorists. They, and they alone, are responsible for what occurred,” said Santos.
The Colombian president also said that he had spoken with Estrada’s wife, Claudia Gaviria, and offered his condolences.
“We offered our condolences and our solidarity. She is the mother of two girls. We deeply regret what happened and are aready to work with the family to help in whatever way we can,” the president continued.
Carlos Estrada had worked for British Petroleum (BP), one of the partners in the gas plant, for 18 years before his life was cut short in the attack.
The Islamist group responsible allegedly carried out the attack as a response to France’s incursion into Mali’s civil war, which borders Algeria on the African continent.
Mali has been involved in a civil war against reactionary Islamist forces for almost a year. The Malinese government recently requested French assistance after momentum began to turn against them. France announced strong support for the government of their former colony, which has been met with strong condemnation from extremist Islamist groups.