Deadly bombings in Algeria

A deadly double bombing near Algiers sparked fears Monday of a wave of Al-Qaeda inspired attacks in what France's foreign minister said had become a "dangerous" country.

The employer of a French engineer who was killed in the attack withdrew its other expatriate staff from Algeria after blasts which local officials said killed 13 people, though the government gave a drastically lower toll of two.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner appealed for foreign firms to stay in Algeria even though he acknowledged in a radio interview that it had become a "dangerous country".