NOUAKCHOTT, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Islamist militants whokidnapped dozens of people in an attack on a gas field inAlgeria said on Wednesday they had been surrounded by securityforces and warned any attempt to free the hostages would have a"tragic end", Mauritania's ANI news agency reported.
One of the kidnappers, reached by ANI, said the alQaeda-affiliated group had placed mines around the installationwhere the hostages were seized.