The Thalit massacre begins in Algeria; all but one of the 53 inhabitants of Thalit are killed by guerrillas.
The Thalit Massacre: A Night of Unspeakable Horror
In the quiet village of Thalit, nestled approximately 70 kilometers from Algeria’s capital, Algiers, within the Médea region near Ksar el Boukhari, an unspeakable tragedy unfolded over the nights of April 3rd and 4th, 1997. This remote community was plunged into terror during a brutal attack that left profound scars on the nation. Of its 53 inhabitants, a horrifying 52 souls were brutally murdered, their lives extinguished through throat-slitting, a grim testament to the violence that gripped the country during a turbulent period.
Aftermath and Attribution
Following the massacre, the villagers' homes, once symbols of life and shelter, were deliberately torched, reducing them to ashes and erasing what remained of the community. Authorities at the time attributed this horrific act to Islamist guerrillas, a stark reminder of the escalating conflict that marked Algeria's devastating "Black Decade," a period of immense civil strife and widespread bloodshed that deeply impacted countless lives.