Full Focus

A controlled burn demonstration in a constructed room blazes away, setting a mannequin standing in front of it on fire, during a media open house at the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) National Laboratory Center in Beltsville, Maryland June 18, 2013. REUTERS/Gary Cameron

Editor's choice

Our top photos from the past 24 hours.   Slideshow 

 

Pictures

Photo

Reuters Photojournalism

Our day's top images, in-depth photo essays and offbeat slices of life. See the best of Reuters photography.  See more | Photo caption 

Photo

Flooding in India

Heavy monsoon rains have swollen several rivers.  Slideshow 

Photo

Celebrity portraits

Up close and personal with famous faces.  Slideshow 

Sponsored Links

UK "would have preferred" notice before Algeria rescue bid

Related Topics

LONDON | Thu Jan 17, 2013 11:30am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain was not given prior notice of the Algerian government operation to release hostages at the remote gas plant where they are being held and would have preferred to have been informed, Prime Minister David Cameron's spokesman said on Thursday.

Cameron had called his Algerian counterpart Abdelmalek Sellal at around 1130 GMT on Thursday.

"The Algerian Prime Minister explained that the situation was very fast-moving and that in the government's judgment they needed to act immediately," the spokesman said.

"The Algerians are aware that we would have preferred to have been consulted in advance," he added.

Cameron told Sellal after the operation started that he was extremely concerned about the "very grave and serious" situation, the spokesman added.

(Reporting by Mohammed Abbas; Editing by Stephen Addison)
World
We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/
Comments (1)
Tiu wrote:
Why should Algeria ask Cameron’s permission to launch an operation against terrorists in Algeria?

Jan 17, 2013 11:39am EST  --  Report as abuse
This discussion is now closed. We welcome comments on our articles for a limited period after their publication.
See All Comments »