Obama Enlists Public to Urge Congress to Act Against Gun Violence

President Obama is trying to enlist the public's help to urge lawmakers to act on his proposals to curbgun violence, telling Americans, "It's got to be up to you" to make a difference.

On Wednesday, Obama unveiled his plan to halt gun violence in America through a comprehensive package of legislation and executive actions. The president is calling for a ban on some types of semiautomatic assault rifles, mandatory background checks for all gun purchases, a ban on high-capacity magazines holding more than 10 rounds, and cracking down on illicit weapons trafficking.

"None of this will be easy," the president says in his weekly address. "Already, we're seeing pundits, politicians, and special-interest lobbyists calling any attempt at commonsense reform an all-out assault on liberty - not because that's true, but because that's how they get higher ratings and make more money. And behind the scenes, they're doing everything they can to protect the status quo."

"But this time, it can't be up to them. It's got to be up to you," he says.

The White House is launching a public campaign to turn up the heat on Congress, and Obama's grassroots supporters are mobilizing to push the president's agenda.

"Ask your member of Congress if they support universal background checks and renewing a ban on military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. And if the answer is no, ask them why not. Ask them why an 'A' grade from the gun lobby is more important than keeping kids safe in a first grade classroom," the president says.

Obama reads from a letter he received in the wake of the deadly school shooting in Newtown, Conn., from an 8-year old girl named Rachel. "She wrote: 'Please do something so that bad people cannot get guns to kill other people. Children should be safe, especially in school.'"

"Rachel is counting on us. Let's get this done for her, and let's make this country a safer place for all our children to learn and grow," he concludes.

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Algerian assault ends crisis, 19 hostages dead

Map locates Ain Amenas, Algeria where hostages were taken

AIN AMENAS, Algeria (AP) — In a bloody finale, Algerian special forces stormed a natural gas complex in the Sahara desert on Saturday to end a standoff with Islamist extremists that left at least 19 hostages and 29 militants dead. Dozens of foreign workersremain unaccounted for, leading to fears the death toll could rise.

With few details emerging from the remote site in eastern Algeria, it was unclear whether anyone was rescued in the final operation.

The siege at Ain Amenas transfixed the world after radical Islamists linked to al-Qaida stormed the complex, which contained hundreds of plant workers from all over the world, and then held them hostage surrounded by the Algerian military and its attack helicopters for four tense days that were punctuated with gunbattles and dramatic tales of escape.

Algeria's response to the crisis was typical of the country's history in confronting terrorists, favoring military action over negotiation, which caused an international outcry from countries worried about their citizens. Algerian military forces twice assaulted the two areas where the hostages were being held with minimal apparent mediation — first on Thursday and then on Saturday.

In the final assault, the remaining band of militants killed seven hostages before special forces killed 11 of the attackers, the state news agency said. It wasn't immediately possible to verify who killed the hostages. The military launched its assault to prevent a fire started by the extremists from engulfing the complex, the report said.

The seven hostages and 11 militants adds to the previous toll of 12 captives and 18 kidnappers, according to the government, but there are fears that the number of hostages killed is much higher and dozens of foreign workers from the Ain Amenas site remain unaccounted for.

Sonatrach, the Algerian state oil company running the site along with BP and Norway's Statoil, said the entire refinery had been mined with explosives, and the process of clearing it out had begun, indicating the militants planned to blow up the complex — one of the largest in oil and gas-rich Algeria.

Algeria has fought its own Islamist rebellion since the 1990s, elements of which later declared allegiance to al-Qaida and then set up new groups in the poorly patrolled wastes of the Sahara along the borders of Niger, Mali, Algeria and Libya, where they flourished.

The standoff has put the spotlight on al-Qaida-linked groups that roam these remote areas, threatening vital infrastructure and energy interests. The militants initially said their operation was intended to stop a French attack on Islamist militants in neighboring Mali — though they later said it was two months in the planning, long before the French intervention.

The militants, who came from a Mali-based group run by an Algerian, attacked the plant Wednesday morning. Armed with heavy machine guns and rocket launchers in four-wheel drive vehicles and fell on a pair of buses taking foreign workers to the airport. The buses' military escort drove off the attackers in a blaze of gunfire that sent bullets zinging over the heads of crouching workers. A Briton and an Algerian — probably a security guard — were killed.

Frustrated, the militants turned to the vast gas complex, divided between the workers' living quarters and the refinery itself, and seized hostages, the Algerian government said. The gas flowing to the site was cut off.

The Algerian government said the militants crept across the border from Libya, 60 miles (100 kilometers) away, while the militants later said they came from Niger, hundreds of miles to the south.

On Thursday, Algerian helicopters kicked off the military's first assault on the complex by opening fire on a convoy carrying both kidnappers and their hostages, resulting in many deaths, according to witnesses.

The accounts of hostages who escaped the standoff showed they faced dangers from both the kidnappers and the military.

Ruben Andrada, 49, a Filipino civil engineer who works as one of the project management staff for the Japanese company JGC Corp., described how he and his colleagues were used as human shields by the kidnappers, which did little to deter the Algerian military.

On Thursday, about 35 hostages guarded by 15 militants were loaded into seven SUVs in a convoy to move them from the housing complex to the refinery, Andrada said. The militants placed "an explosive cord" around their necks and were told it would detonate if they tried to run away, he said.

"When we left the compound, there was shooting all around," Andrada said, as Algerian helicopters attacked with guns and missiles. "I closed my eyes. We were going around in the desert. To me, I left it all to fate."

Andrada's vehicle overturned allowing him and a few others to escape. He sustained cuts and bruises and was grazed by a bullet on his right elbow. He later saw the blasted remains of other vehicles, and the severed leg of one of the gunmen.

The site of the gas plant spreads out over several hectares (acres) and includes a housing complex and the processing site, about a mile apart, making it especially complicated for the Algerians to secure the site and likely contributed to the lengthy standoff.

"It's a big and complex site. It's a huge place with a lot of people there and a lot of hiding places for hostages and terrorists," said Col. Richard Kemp, a retired commander of British forces who had dealt with hostage rescues in Iraq and Afghanistan. "These are experienced terrorists holding the hostages."

Casualty figures varied widely. While the Algerian government has only admitted to 19 hostages dead so far, the militants claimed through the Mauritanian news website ANI that the helicopter attack alone killed 35 hostages.

One American, from Texas, is among the dead and least one Briton, a Frenchman and Algerians have also died in the standoff. Escaped Algerian workers describe seeing people of many nationalities, including Japanese, shot down.

French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Saturday that the Frenchman killed, Yann Desjeux, was a former member of the French special forces and part of the security team. The remaining three French nationals who were at the plant are now free, the Foreign Ministry said.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague confirmed that as of Saturday, there were "fewer than 10" British nationals still at risk or unaccounted for and "the majority of" Britons at the plant were now safe, he said.

Statoil CEO Helge Lund said Saturday that there were only six Norwegians unaccounted for, from the 17 at the plant at the time of the attack. BP said four of its 18 employees were still unaccounted for.

Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta said Saturday one Romanian hostage was killed in the course of the siege, while four escaped unharmed.

The attack by the Mali-based Masked Brigade, founded by Algerian militant Moktar Belmoktar, had been in the works for two months, a member of the brigade told the ANI news outlet. He said militants targeted Algeria because they expected the country to support the international effort to root out extremists in neighboring Mali and it was carried out by a special commando unit, "Those Who Signed in Blood," tasked with attacking nations supporting intervention in Mali.

The kidnappers focused on the foreign workers, largely leaving alone the hundreds of Algerian workers who were briefly held hostage before being released or escaping.

Several of them arrived haggard-looking on a late-night flight into Algiers on Friday and described how the militants stormed the living quarters and immediately separated out the foreigners.

Mohamed, a 37-year-old nurse who like the others wouldn't allow his last names to be used for fear of trouble for himself or his family, said at least five people were shot to death, their bodies still in front of the infirmary when he left Thursday night.

Chabane, who worked in food services, said he bolted out the window and was hiding when he heard the militants speaking among themselves with Libyan, Egyptian and Tunisian accents. At one point, he said, they caught a Briton.

"They threatened him until he called out in English to his friends, telling them, 'Come out, come out. They're not going to kill you. They're looking for the Americans,'" Chabane said.

"A few minutes later, they blew him away."

_____

Paul Schemm reported from Rabat, Morocco. Associated Press writers Aomar Ouali and Karim Kebir in Algiers; Oliver Teves in Manila, Philippines; Elaine Ganley in Paris; Sylvia Hui in London, and Jan M. Olsen in Copenhagen contributed to this report.

____________

Note: According to latest news, the death toll rose to at least 23 hostages and all 32 militants killed .

Hundreds join pro-gun rallies in state capitals

Hundreds of gun supporters rally at the Statehouse, Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013 in Concord, N.H. Rallies are being held by gun rights advocates four days after President Barack Obama unveiled a sweeping plan to curb gun violence. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Hundreds of people are gathering in state capitals nationwide to rally against stricter gun control measures.

An estimated 600 people turned out so far for Saturday speeches inAustin, Texas. Many are carrying signs with messages such as "AnArmed Society is a Polite Society" and "The Second Amendment Comes from God."

Meanwhile, police say hundreds more joined rallies in New England while organizers also have plans to gather in capital cites to the west.

Activists have promoted the "Guns Across America" rallies primarily via social media. They're being held days after President Barack Obama unveiled a sweeping package of gun-control proposals.

First-term Texas state Rep. Steve Toth is among attendees inAustin. He's one of several state officials nationwide who've proposed trying to curb federal gun restrictions in states.

Bloody hostage siege over, explosives teams scour Algerian gas plant for mines, bodies

ALGIERS, Algeria - Algerian de-mining teams were scouring a gas refinery on Sunday that was the scene of a bloody four-day hostage standoff, searching for explosive traps left by the Islamic militant who took dozens of foreigners prisoner. The siege left at least 23 hostages dead, and the American government warned that there were credible threats of more kidnapping attempts on Westerners.

Algerian special forces stormed the natural gas complex in the Sahara desert on Saturday to end the standoff, and the government said all 32 militants were killed.

With few details emerging from the remote site in eastern Algeria, it was unclear whether anyone was rescued in the final operation, but the number of hostages killed on Saturday — seven — was how many the militants had said that morning they still had. The government described the toll as provisional and some foreigners remained unaccounted for.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said Sunday three Britons were killed and another three are believed dead, as is a British resident.

"Now of course people will ask questions about the Algerian response to these events, but I would just say that the responsibility for these deaths lies squarely with the terrorists who launched a vicious and cowardly attack," Cameron said.

In Ottawa, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird issued a statement condemning "the deplorable and cowardly attacks by terrorists in Ain Amenas, Algeria."

Baird said it's believed there were no Canadians or dual nationals are among the hostages, and that one permanent resident of Canada who was reported to be onsite has left Algeria and is safe.

There were reports Friday that a news agency in Mauritania — Agence Nouakchott d’Information — has quoted an unnamed source with the militant group who says the hostage-takers included people from Mali, Egypt, Niger, Mauritania and Canada.

Ottawa says it is "pursuing all appropriate channels to seek further information" and is in close contact with Algerian authorities.

The siege at Ain Amenas transfixed the world after radical Islamists linked to al-Qaida stormed the complex on Wednesday, which contained hundreds of plant workers from all over the world, then held them hostage surrounded by the Algerian military and its attack helicopters for four tense days that were punctuated with gun battles and dramatic tales of escape.

Algeria's response to the crisis was typical of its history in confronting terrorists, favouring military action over negotiation, which caused an international outcry from countries worried about their citizens. Algerian military forces twice assaulted the two areas where the hostages were being held with minimal apparent mediation — first on Thursday, then on Saturday.

"To avoid a bloody turn of events in response to the extreme danger of the situation, the army'sspecial forces launched an intervention with efficiency and professionalism to neutralize the terrorist groups that were first trying to flee with the hostages and then blow up the gas facilities," Algeria's Interior Ministry said in a statement about the standoff.

De-mining teams began going through the complex late Saturday and Sunday, searching for explosive traps left behind by the militants, the state news service said, citing security officials that it did not name. Sonatrach, the Algerian state oil company running the Ain Amenas site along with BP and Norway's Statoil, said the entire refinery had been mined.

The State Department issued a travel warning Saturday night for Americans in or travelling to Algeria, citing credible threats of the kidnapping of Western nationals. The department also authorized the departure from Algeria of staff members' families if they choose to leave.

Immediately after the assault, French President Francois Hollande gave his backing to Algeria's tough tactics, saying they were "the most adapted response to the crisis."

"There could be no negotiations" with terrorists, the French media quoted him as saying in the central French city of Tulle.

Hollande said the hostages were "shamefully murdered" by their captors, and he linked the event to France's military operation against al-Qaida-backed rebels in neighbouring Mali. "If there was any need to justify our action against terrorism, we would have here, again, an additional argument," he said.

In the final assault, the remaining band of militants killed seven hostages before 11 of them were in turn cut down by the special forces, Algeria's state news agency said. The military launched its Saturday assault to prevent a fire started by the extremists from engulfing the complex and blowing it up, the report added.

A total of 685 Algerian and 107 foreigner workers were freed over the course of the four-day standoff, the Interior Ministry statement said, adding that the group of militants that attacked the remote Saharan natural gas complex consisted of 32 men of various nationalities, including three Algerians and explosives experts.

The military also said it confiscated heavy machine-guns, rocket launchers, missiles and grenades attached to suicide belts.

Algeria has fought its own Islamist rebellion since the 1990s, elements of which later declared allegiance to al-Qaida and then set up new groups in the poorly patrolled wastes of the Sahara along the borders of Niger, Mali, Algeria and Libya, where they flourished.

The standoff has put the spotlight on al-Qaida-linked groups that roam these remote areas, threatening vital infrastructure and energy interests. The militants initially said their operation was intended to stop a French attack on Islamist militants in neighbouring Mali — though they later said it was two months in the planning, long before the French intervention.

The militants, who came from a Mali-based al-Qaida splinter group run by an Algerian, attacked the plant Wednesday morning. Armed with heavy machine-guns and rocket launchers in four-wheel drive vehicles, they fell on a pair of buses taking foreign workers to the airport. The buses' military escort drove off the attackers in a blaze of gunfire that sent bullets zinging over the heads of crouching workers. A Briton and an Algerian — probably a security guard — were killed.

The militants then turned to the vast gas complex, divided between the workers' living quarters and the refinery itself, and seized hostages, the Algerian government said. The gas flowing to the site was cut off.

The accounts of hostages who escaped the standoff showed they faced dangers from both the kidnappers and the military. The militants focused on the foreign workers from the outset, largely leaving alone the hundreds of Algerian workers who were briefly held hostage before being released or escaping.