Algeria

ALGIERS, Algeria -- Up to 6,000 Algerians have been arrested in the government's crackdown on Islamic fundamentalists, and President Mohamed Boudiaf vowed yesterday to continue the state of emergency in the face of a growing wave of attacks by armed militants against government forces."

Gen. Edmond Jouhaud, 90, who led a military rebellion in 1961 to keep Algeria in French hands in defiance of former President Charles de Gaulle, died Monday at home in Royan, France. The native of Algeria was the last survivor of the four generals who organized the uprising. De Gaulle denounced the four as a "group of partisan, ambitious and fanatical officers." General Jouhaud was sentenced to death for his part but was later pardoned. The generals launched their uprising on April 22, 1961, on the eve of talks to end a seven-year independence war that killed as many as a million people.

A two-week news blackout on Clinton moved him from last to first in the polls, which says a lot about all three.Forget the president. We ought to have direct elections of Supreme Court justices, who would promise how they would rule on pending issues.Poor Algeria. It's running out of presidents.If it's Serbia vs. the world, bet on Serbia, which cares more.Cheer up. Bears are returning to Baltimore County.

TELEVISION HIGHLIGHTS NASCAR Sprint Cup: Toy./Save Mart 350 (T) SPEED Noon MLB Kansas City@Washington MASN 9 a.m. Cincinnati@Oakland MLB 3:30 Kansas City@Washington MASN 4:30 Detroit@Mets ESPN 7 Florida@Orioles MASN2 7 Cubs@Seattle WGN-A 10 Cleveland@Philadelphia (T) CN8 10:30 Kansas City@Washington (T) MASN 11:30 C. base. NCAA World Series: teams TBA ESPN2 7 WNBA Tulsa@Atlanta NBA Noon World Cup Group Stage: Algeria vs. U.S. ESPN 9:30 a.m. Group Stage: England vs. Slovenia ESPN2 9:30 a.m. Group Stage: Germany vs. Ghana ESPN 2 Group Stage: Australia vs. Serbia ESPN2 2 Group Stage: Algeria vs. U.S. (T)

CAIRO, Egypt -- Gunmen killed former Prime Minister Kasdi Merbah of Algeria yesterday, and the authorities blamed Muslim fundamentalists who are trying to replace Algeria's secular society with an Iranian-style Islamic republic.Mr. Merbah, 55, was killed along with his son, brother, bodyguard and chauffeur as they were returning from a beach house in a coastal resort east of Algiers.He was known as a vehement opponent of Muslim fundamentalism, and his assassination reflects the rift in Algerian society that has turned into a near civil war since January 1992.

Sometimes it's hard to tell the power of religion from mere opposition to secular dictatorship. Were the people wanting to turn Algeria into a theocracy, in the Dec. 26 election? Or just to register disgust with the National Liberation Front, which has ruled since independence in 1962 with increasing corruption and ineptitude?In any case, President Chadli Benjedid, who gradually conceded democratic forms after 1988 riots, will carry on until 1993, when an election is scheduled. But the parliament will be dominated by the Islamic Salvation Front, which won a stunning victory in the first round of parliamentary voting last week as it had previously in local elections.

The hijacking of a French airliner by Islamic extremists represents a new phase of escalation in a struggle for power in Algeria between the quasi-military government and Islamist forces, both radical and moderate. The United States would be well-advised to avoid being caught between France and the Algerians.Algeria has been lumbering toward its moment of truth for the past two years as a brutal civil war between a dying authoritarian regime and increasingly violent Islamist forces lurches to denouement.

Motivation level high Paul Doyle Hartford Courant After a sometimes lethargic performance against the Netherlands on Wednesday, the U.S. doesn't seem primed for much success in the World Cup. And with the Americans slipping to 18th in the FIFA rankings, expectations couldn't be lower. That's why the U.S. can sneak out of the first round in South Africa. After opening with a doozy - England on June 12 - the Americans have Slovenia and Algeria.

CHERIF GUELLAL, 76 Algerian resistance fighter and diplomat Cherif Guellal, an Algerian resistance fighter, businessman and diplomat who cut a glamorous figure in Washington society and was the longtime companion of a former Miss America, died of leukemia April 7 at a hospital in Algiers. Mr. Guellal was a veteran of the bloody independence movement that in 1962 secured freedom for his north African country from French rule. After serving as a top lieutenant to Ahmed Ben Bella, the rebel leader-turned-president, Mr. Guellal arrived in Washington as post-colonial Algeria's first ambassador to the United States.

Seven Davis Cup first-round series, including the World Group matches between France and Israel, were postponed yesterday because of the Gulf war.The International Tennis Federation also announced that the defending champion United States' series with Mexico was under review for security reasons but remained scheduled Feb. 1-3 in Mexico City.There was no immediate word when a decision on the U.S.-Mexico series would be made.The ITF, tennis' ruling body, said that in addition to France-Israel, scheduled for Marseille, France, those matches postponed included Bangladesh at Bahrain, Syria at Sri Lanka, Kuwait at Singapore, Saudi Arabia at Malaysia, Senegal at Egypt and Cote d'Ivoire at Algeria.