Algerian president condemns church bombing in Egypt

Algerian President Abdel-Aziz Bouteflika has strongly denounced a terrorist attack that struck the Church of Two Saints in the Egyptian city of Alexandria on Saturday.

In a cable of condolences sent to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, Bouteflika condemned the attack, that claimed the lives of 21 innocent people, as an "abominable act of terrorism", according to the state-run Algerian Press Service (APS).

Bouteflika further emphasized that the unity between the Egyptian people will undoubtedly enable it to overcome this painful ordeal.

At least 21 people were killed and 79 others wounded in the bombing early on Saturday that targeted worshippers emerging from New Year's mass.

The attacks sparked angry street protests in Alexandria and elsewhere to denounce the heinous crime.

The Egyptian Interior Ministry said the attack bore the hallmark of foreign hands.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. But earlier, an al-Qaida affiliate based in Iraq had threatened to attack Churches in Egypt, allegedly for detaining two women who had converted to Islam.