Algeria Army Seizes Guns, Explosives

Algeria's defense ministry said on Friday a military sweep in an area where 25 Islamist gunmen were killed this week has uncovered two major arms caches.

Since Tuesday, the army has been searching the mountainous Ferkioua area of Bouira province, east of Algiers.

The sweep came following information that militants were in the area, a zone of operations of Jund el-Khilafa, a local affiliate of the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.

Among the weapons seized were machineguns, automatic rifles, a rocket-propelled grenade launcher with six rounds and 13 home-made bombs, the ministry said on Friday.

Also seized were more than 35 kilos of various explosives and 31 detonators, it said.

On Thursday, Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra said that "only remnants of terrorism" remain in Algeria.

Islamist-linked violence rocked the North African country in the 1990s but has since waned, although armed groups remain active in central and eastern Algeria.