Kyodo via AP

An Islamic militant (in camouflage uniform, rear right) stands near Algerian employees who were forced to leave their living quarters with their belongings at the In Amenas natural gas complex in Algeria on Jan. 16.

The images are striking for what they don’t show. They hold only hints of the bloodshed to come.

The Japanese news agency Kyodo has released the first photographs from inside a hostage crisis in the North African nation of Algeria, secretly snapped by one of the captives with a cellphone camera.

Islamist fighters stormed a gas field and nearby barracks on Jan. 16 and took hundreds of people hostage. The Algerian army launched a rescue raid the following day, opening a three-day standoff.

It ended in a bloody clash. The Algerian government put the death toll at 67, including 38 foreign workers and 29 militants. The U.S. State Department said that three Americans were among those killed.

The photos released by Kyodo depict the opening hours of the crisis. They show a scene that -- while certainly not safe -- appeared stable.

In one shot, an Islamic militant, armed and wearing a mask and camouflage uniform, stands several feet away from three Algerian workers who had been forced to leave their living quarters. One of the three is wearing a hoodie, and another has his hands stuffed in his pockets.

Kyodo via Reuters

An Islamic militant (rear center, in camouflage) stands among Algerian employees who were forced to leave their living quarters with their belongings at the In Amenas natural gas complex on Jan. 16.

In a second photo, Algerian workers stand around among duffel bags and plastic water bottles arranged on the ground outside. A militant appears in the background, facing away, easy to miss but for the butt of his rifle.

A third picture is far more ominous: In the foreground are several militants, in the background at least a dozen hostages, forced to sit against a wall of the complex.

Kyodo via AP

Islamic militants stand in front of foreign hostages, seen sitting against a wall, at the Ain Amenas natural gas complex on Jan. 16.

Kyodo did not say how it had obtained the photos. A Japanese government source said on Monday that the Algerian government listed nine Japanese killed in the siege, the highest toll among non-Algerians working at the site.

Brendan Mcdermid / Reuters

People wait for gas at a Hess fuelling station in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Nov. 2.

Seth Wenig / AP

A police officer moves a car that is out of gas, trying to position it so it can fill up, at a gas station in Brooklyn, N.Y. on Nov. 2.

Adrees Latif / Reuters

A policeman stands guard between a line of New York City yellow taxi cabs waiting to get fuel from a gas station in Midtown Manhattan on Nov. 2.

From NBC News Staff: Damage from the Superstorm Sandy has forced many gas stations to close and has disrupted fuel deliveries, causing long lines at the stations that remained open. Power outages kept many pumps out of service. Gas-seekers traded tips via social media and roamed the region for hours in search of functioning pumps. Police officers helped maintain order at the few stations in operation. 

Gas-seekers traded tips via social media and roamed the region for hours in search of functioning pumps. Police officers helped maintain order at the few stations in operation. Full Story

Adrees Latif / Reuters

A woman covers her face in frustration while waiting for hours in line to get fuel outside at a gas station in Queens, N.Y., on Nov. 1, 2012.

Adrees Latif / Reuters

A man fights for his place in line while waiting to get fuel at a gas station in Queens, N.Y., on Nov. 1, 2012.

Slideshow: Sandy slams into East Coast

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Superstorm Sandy made landfall Monday evening on a destructive and deadly path across the Northeast.

Launch slideshow

More Sandy-related stories on PhotoBlog:

• Island of tears: Hurricane Sandy devastates Staten Island families
• Aerial views reveal Sandy's destructive power
• Evacuations continue and residents take stock in destroyed Breezy Point neighborhood
• Hurricane Sandy leaves surreal scenes in its wake
• Devastating fire follows flooding in Breezy Point, Queens

Tim Wimborne / Reuters

Farmer Clive Duddy sits in front of an access gate to a neighboring property, owned by coal seam gas miner Santos, during a blockade of the property by local landholders near Spring Ridge, 290 km (180 miles) north of Sydney, Australia on November 2. With a surge of popular support for measures ranging from more regulation to an outright ban on drilling, the coal-seam gas industry, an industry spreading rapidly across the Australian landscape, faces the prospect of project delays, higher costs and even blockades that have already succeeded in delaying drilling. Picture taken November 2.

Tim Wimborne / Reuters

Coal seam gas wells stand in formation on a property near Cecil Plains, 180 km (112 miles) west of Brisbane on October 31.

Tim Wimborne / Reuters

A facility for holding water pumped from underground during coal-seam gas mining is lined with black plastic before use on a property near Cecil Plains, 180 km (112 miles) west of Brisbane, on October 31.

Tim Wimborne / Reuters

Freshly cut wheat stands under approaching storm clouds on a property owned by farmer Scott Wason near Roma, 430 km (267 miles) west of Brisbane, October 29. Farmers contend that the coal-seam industry puts additional stress on the local aquifers.

Tim Wimborne / Reuters

Farmer Scott Wason holds a stalk of wheat during the harvest on his property near Roma, 430 km (267 miles) west of Brisbane, October 29.

 From Reuters:

Nov 16 (Reuters) - Australia's coal seam gas industry is expected to grow into an $80 billion enterprise as demand for gas, particularly in Asia, drives rapid growth in the industry.  

Here are some frequently asked questions about the coal seam gas industry:

 WHAT IS COAL SEAM GAS?

Coal-seam gas production evolved from coal mining, where the gas trapped in coal seams can still be a hazard to miners -- and the reason for the proverbial "canary in the coal mine".

The largest coal-seam gas resources are in Canada, Russia, China, Australia and the United States, in order of potential size, according to the International Energy Agency. Coal-seam gas is also known as coalbed methane, coal-seam methane, and coal-mine methane.

 HOW LONG HAS COAL-SEAM GAS BEEN PRODUCED IN AUSTRALIA?

 Coal-seam gas exploration began in 1976, but the first commercially viable well only came online two decades later in 1998. Australia has about 250 trillion cubic feet of coal-seam gas reserves, enough to power a city of one million people for 5,000 years, according to industry estimates.

 WHO ARE THE MAJOR PLAYERS IN AUSTRALIAN COAL SEAM GAS?

 Australia's coal-seam gas resources are concentrated on its eastern seaboard, with around $45 billion in projects already underway in Queensland state to turn coal-seam gas into liquefied natural gas (LNG) for export.

 Queensland Gas Company, a unit of BG Group, Santos , and Origin are heading up these projects, which are expected to come online around 2015 and cost about $15 billion each. Arrow LNG, a joint venture of Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina, also has a project on the drawing board. Several companies including Santos and AGL have operations in the state of New South Wales, but no major export projects have emerged there yet.

 WHY HAS THERE BEEN SO MUCH OPPOSITION TO COAL SEAM GAS?

 Coal-seam gas production involves pumping large amounts of water out of the ground to release gas trapped in coal seams, which can impact water-table levels. Opponents say the process could impact important Australian farming areas.

 Coal-seam gas resources intersect with the Great Artesian Basin. One of the largest underground water reservoirs in the world, it straddles three Australian states and has been crucial in providing water to the country's sheep and cattle industry.

 Another concern is a drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, which involves blasting large amounts of water mixed with sand and chemicals into coal seams to free trapped gas.

 The process, also known as "fracking," is used on about 8 percent of coal-seam gas wells in Queensland, although that will likely increase to 25 to 40 percent of wells as they age and the gas becomes more difficult to extract, according to the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.

 Opponents say fracking could pollute groundwater beneath prime agricultural land, but the industry says safety precautions mean that water quality will not be impacted and that the industry can co-exist with farmers.

 Critics of the industry have also said extensive dredging required to build the LNG export plants could harm marine life and Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

For more on this story click here.

 As reported on NBC’s Rock Center with Brian Williams, similar debates over fracking are occuring in North Dakota’s booming Bakken gas field:

Good jobs, great pay: Jobs boom brings thousands to small North Dakota town

Oil boom brings growing pains to North Dakota town

Tobias Schwarz / Reuters

Left to right, France's Prime Minister Francois Fillon German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Netherlands' Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev pose to mark the opening of the North Sea gas pipeline on Germany's Baltic coast in Lubmin November 8, 2011.

 The German, French, Russian and Dutch leaders opened the North Sea gas pipeline on Germany's Baltic coast. 

Many years ago, while working as a newspaper photographer, our editor outlawed check-passings, ground-breakings and all other  made-for-press events. What do you think about photos like these?

According to Dominion Power, which services the vast majority of those without power in North Carolina and Virginia, 1.2 million customers are in need of having service restored. The company expects to complete an assessment of damage and have an estimate of when restoration for all customers will be complete by noon on Monday. This will be the second-largest restoration after Hurricane Isabel in 2003.

Takaaki Iwabu / The News & Observer via AP

Chris Respess, middle, buys an electric generator from Randy Sparks in Washington, N.C., Aug. 28. Respess said there are lot of people in Washington who still don't have electricity and are getting desperate. Sparks, who owns a discount grocery store in Belmont, Miss., brought a few hundred of generators to sell along Rt. 264.

AP reports that the Colonial Pipeline, which transports gasoline and other fuels from the Gulf Coast to the Northeast, stopped fuel deliveries to Selma, N.C., and to Virginia's Tidewater area as the storm knocked out power. Colonial Pipeline's website states that they are working with customers to restore service to all areas supplied by the Houston-to-New York pipeline.

Chris Carmichael

Sam Liptrap of Atlantic Beach siphons gas from his car to fuel his generator. Liptrap, who owns the Sand Dollar Hotel, says Hurricane Irene cost him $2,500 in lost revenue this past weekend. Atlantic Beach was largely spared from the worst of the storm, but residents are likely to remain without power until crews can repair feeds to the area, which could mean more vacant rooms in the coming days for Liptrap.

Chris Carmichael

Phillip Henry, left, of Morehead City, N.C., and Henderson Douglas, center, of Newport, N.C., wait in line for gas at a Shell Station on NC 24. By early afternoon, only two gas stations were reported to be pumping gas in the area. Supplies waned as residents looked to fuel their generators.

See more images from the storm here.

Sergei Grits / AP

Belarusian drivers wait in a queue to fill their tanks with fuel a petrol station before a price hike in Minsk, Monday, May 23, 2011. Prices of fuel will rise up to 20 percent by Tuesday, according to local media reports.

Tatyana Zenkovich / EPA

Customers pass by empty shelves in an electronic equipment shop in Minsk, Belarus, 23 May 2011. Booming demand for certain commodities and growing prices at Belarussian shops result from instability on the currency market.

Vladimir Nikolsky / Reuters

People queue up to buy foreign currency outside an exchange office of Belarusbank in Minsk May 23, 2011. The Belarussian rouble strengthened on the interbank market on Monday, bankers said, extending gains made last week after the government announced asset sale plans and Russia said Minsk could get a loan in June.

Here's a story about Belarus devaluing its currency by a third.