About 20 suspected prostitutes were hurt when a mob of about 500 men armed with clubs and knives carried out what they called a "punitive expedition" in a city in southeastern Algeria, newspapers reported Sunday.
The attack on women living alone in poor districts of Hassi Messaoud, an oil city some 800 kilometers (500 miles) southeast of Algiers, took place Friday and was "prepared" during a sermon at the city's main mosque, the reports said.
The papers said the women, some with small children, had come to the city in search of employment and were working as domestic servants, while in the sermon they were accused of having "loose morals."
The attack left about 20 of the women with cuts to their faces.
Some women were molested during the attack, the reports said, adding that several of the assailants were arrested -- ALGIERS (AFP)
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