Seven dead in fire at Algeria beach resort

Seven people died when a deliberately lit fire tore through a tourism complex at a beach resort on the outskirts of the Algerian capital on Wednesday, the civil defence service said.

The blaze erupted around 02:30 (01:30 GMT) at a bungalow in the Azur complex in Zeralda, about 20km west of Algiers, official news agency APS quoted the civil defence service as saying.

A police official later told state television that the fire was of criminal origin, and that three suspects were identified and being sought.

All of the seven people killed were Algerians, and were between 25 and 35 years old, including two women. They all died of asphyxiation. One person was also injured.