U.N. staff death toll in Algiers bomb raised

UNITED NATIONS - The number of U.N. staff killed in a bombing that damaged two U.N. buildings in Algiers three days ago has risen to 17 after several bodies were found in the rubble, the United Nations said on Friday.

It was one of the highest death tolls for U.N. employees in a single attack. A bombing at the U.N. office in Baghdad in 2003 killed 22 people, but seven of the victims were visitors.

Al Qaeda's North African wing claimed responsibility for twin car bombs on Tuesday that killed more than 30 people in all at the U.N. offices and a court building, saying it had targeted what it called "the slaves of America and France."

"The efforts on the ground to clear away the rubble following the bomb blast at the U.N. offices in Algeria last Tuesday have, as we feared, helped us find and identify more bodies," said U.N. spokeswoman Marie Okabe.

"Consequently I can now confirm that 17 U.N. staff were killed in the Algiers attack," she said.

Previously the United Nations had confirmed 11 deaths.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has asked U.N. staff to observe a minute's silence on Monday.

"I have learned with profound sadness that the death toll on the bombing in Algiers is even higher than we feared," Ban said in a statement.

The United Nations has so far identified nine of the dead employees -- six Algerians and one victim each from Denmark, Senegal the Philippines.