PARIS. Aug 7: The Frenth government has put itself on a collision course with Algeria's fundamentalist Muslims by carrying out a highly publicised crackdown on suspected Islamic militants, analysts said, reports Reuter.

Algerian expert Bengamin Stora saia it was "certainly possible"' that fundamentalist guerilla networks existed and could mount attacks within France.

"We are In a very complex, difficult and dramatic situation. Stora told LCI television.

The Daily Liberation said Frances policy "underlined the differences between France and its allies in their approach to a solution to the Algerian drama."

The French government took action against suspected Algerian Muslim militants on

its territory after five French officials were killed on Wednesday in a guerilla attack on a French embassy housing compound tn Algiers.

It rounded tip 17 suspected activists and interned them under heavy guard at an army camp in the village of Folembray northeast of Paris.

Hardline Interior Minister Charles Pasqua said they had been served with expulsion orders but would be detained indefinitely in France because of the threat they would face if returned to Algeria.

Government officials said the crackdown had two goals, to impress on the French people that it was acting firmly after the Algiers killings and to tell Muslim activists that it would not tolerate the planning within its borders of guerilla actions.

The Algerian Islamic Salvation Army (AIS), military wing of the banned Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), threatened reprisals unless those in terned were freed

But Irrterior Ministry officials said France expected such threats when it decided to round up the suspected activists