The UK, speaking on behalf of the European Union, has condemned the fresh wave of murders in Algeria.

Two new massacres in Algeria have claimed the lives of 172 people in the west of the country, according to newspaper reports.

The BBC's Jim Muir reports from Cairo on these latest massacres (Dur: 1'-54")

It is not clear who was responsible for the deaths, but suspicion is pointing to the Islamic fundamentalists of the GIA.

Dozens of civilians were burned alive and 117 had their throats cut in attacks on three villages at the weekend, the Algerian newspaper La Tribune said on Tuesday.

Villagers arming themselves for protection

A strongly-worded statement from the UK Government's Foreign Office said: "The Presidency deplores and condemns the recent appalling attacks in the north-west of the country.

"The terrorists must stop this mindless violence against innocent people. No motive can justify these atrocities."

Village razed

Newspaper reports said there were no survivors in the village of Had Chekala in the western Relizane province, which was burned down in an attack on Sunday night.

Soldiers unable to protect villages

There has been no official or independent confirmation of the reports.

La Tribune said the other massacre took place on Saturday night at Remka, near Relizane, and only a handful of survivors lived to tell the tale.

No survivors

La Tribune, describing the burning of the village, said: "There were no survivors in the hamlet of Had Chekala, sited on the outskirts of Ammi Moussa area, which was put to fire and blood.

"The terrorists, estimated at more than 30, completely razed the village according to witnesses."

The Le Matin newspaper said an unspecified number of civilians were massacred in an unnamed village in the Ain Tarik area in Relizane province on Sunday night.

At the weekend the Liberte newspaper reported 412 people had been killed last week in Relizane province, while the government put the toll at 78.

Upsurge in violence

There has been an upsurge in political violence in Algeria since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on December 31.

Ramadan is regarded as an auspicious month for jihad, or "holy war", by the Islamic extremists who began an uprising against the military-backed regime in 1992 after the cancellation of elections which the fundamentalist Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) was poised to win.

At least 60,000 people have been killed in political violence since then with Amnesty International putting the figure as high as 80,000.

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