The official death toll rose to 38 Saturday after a bomb timed to coincide with Algeria's independence day exploded in a market town square, while three others were reported dead elsewhere in the country's continuous violence.
Previous reports put casualties at 35 dead and 80 wounded in Friday's blast at Larbaa, some 20 kilometers south of Algiers.
Islamic extremists were being held responsible for the blast, the latest in 10 years of violence which are believed to have left at least 100,000 dead, and the deadliest such attack so far this year.
In other incidents, media reports said two Islamic extremists were shot dead by security forces, while one civilian was killed and five people injured in separate incidents in the past week, according to AFP. (Albawaba.com)
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