Algeria army kills man behind French beheading

ALGIERS, Algeria – Algeria’s Ministry of Defence says the man behind the kidnapping and beheading of a French hiker in September has been killed in a military operation.

The statement says Abdelmalek Gouri was killed together with two associates late Monday near the city of Boumerdes, east of the capital.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Two other militants were killed Tuesday morning nearby, added the statement.

A group calling itself Jund al-Khilafah and pledging allegiance to the Islamic State group in Syria kidnapped French hiker Herve Gourdel in the Djurdjura mountains.

Gourdel was beheaded on video a few days later when demands for France to end airstrikes were not met.

The Algerian army carried out a massive operation to find the group behind the kidnapping and said two other members have been killed in past months.