ALGIERS, Oct 8, 2008 (AFP) - An Algerian army major died in a bomb attack blamed on Islamic militants in M'sila, 250 kilometers (155 miles) southeast of the capital Algiers, the country's newspapers reported Wednesday.

However, there has been no official confirmation of the attack by Algerian authorities.

The independent newspaper Al Watan said the army major died when a bomb exploded Tuesday.

It added that the bomb was hidden under the dead body of a man who an armed-Islamist group had kidnapped two days earlier.

The east of the country has suffered several serious attacks in recent months, many of which have been claimed by Islamists who are part of an Al-Qaeda branch in North Africa.