Armed Islamic Front

aka Jihad Armed Islamic Front, Armed Islamic Front for the Jihad

The Armed Islamic Front is the military wing of Algeria's largest opposition party, the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS). In January 1992, the Algerian military cancelled a second round of elections that the banned FIS was likely to win; in response the Front began a campaign of terror.

Members of the Armed Islamic Front and other Islamic militant groups first carried out bombings and killings targeting government institutions and security forces. However, the violence soon spilled over into attacks on civilians, foreigners, journalists, and intellectuals. More than 100,000 people have been killed in the past decade.

As civil order in Algeria continued to disintegrate, the Islamic opposition splintered into a confusing array of groups. The Armed Islamic Front is generally considered to be the same group as the Jihad Armed Islamic Front or Armed ...