The al-Qaeda Organisation in the Islamic Maghreb between December and April recruited over 50 children aged under 16, the pan-Arab al-Hayat newspaper reported on Friday, quoting Algerian intelligence sources.

Police were alarmed that a 15-year-old suicide bomber carried out a deadly attack earlier this month in the Algerian port city of Dellys. The boy managed to pass unnoticed through security checks.

Police say that many of these children had been given training in carrying out suicide attacks either in Iraq or in Algeria.

Another Algerian daily Ech-Chourouk, reports that children as young as 11 and 12 years of age have seen surfing jihadist websites in the country's Internet cafes and reading web pages giving instructions on how to make bombs and carry out attacks.

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Ech-Chourouk - which closely follows al-Qaedas' activities in Algeria - lays the blame at the government's door. A lack of legislation regulating Internet cafes has allowed