PRESS TV

Eight people have lost their lives in two bomb attacks which targeted Algerian security guards and soldiers in the north of the African nation.

The attacks happened near Bejaia, around 250 kilometers (160 miles) east of Algiers, the El-Watan daily reported.

The seven private security guards were killed late on Saturday when a bomb exploded as their van was driving past on a mountain road at Tifra, near Bejaia, according to the paper.

The other bomb explosion hit in the same area about an hour later, killing a soldier and wounding two others.

A search operation was immediately launched to find those involved in the attacks as security forces backed by two helicopters sealed off the area.

The security forces killed were in charge of the safety of foreign workers working at the site of a high-voltage transmission line.

Algerian authorities would not immediately confirm the attack, which would be the deadliest by anti-government forces in more than five months.