Al-Qaida’s North African affiliate claimed responsibility today for a car bombing in Algeria that killed 30 coastguard officers and another recent blast that ripped through a crowd waiting for the president.

Waving banners and honking car horns, supporters of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika claimed he was heading for victory today, in a re-election bid that opponents claim was tainted by fraud.

ALGERIANS, lurching towards democracy after a bloody Islamic uprising, are going to the polls today in a presidential election that pits President Abdelaziz Bouteflika against a group of challengers warning of possible electoral fraud.