Algiers - A leader of one of Algeria's two Muslim radical groups was negotiating his surrender yesterday as the army appeared willing to extend an ultimatum for a promised all-out attack.
Politicians said Mr Hassan Hattab, head of the Da'wa wal Djihad (Appeal and Struggle), an organisation notorious for its attacks on government forces, was eager to secure a blanket amnesty similar to the one President Abdelaziz Bouteflika granted on Tuesday to the rival Islamic Salvation Army (AIS).
They said Mr Bouteflika would address the nation today to spell out his next move after the expiry of a six-month-old guerrilla amnesty - a key element in his peace drive to end eight years of violence in which 100,000 people have been killed.