When Algerian police searched the home of 52-year-old Yacine Mebarki they found among his books a copy of the Qur'an. It was an old copy, he says, that he inherited from his grandfather. On closer examination, the police spotted that one of its pages was missing – and charged him with...
Blog archive: Algeria
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13th October 2020
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28th May 2020Health authorities in Algeria and Morocco say they intend to continue treating Covid-19 patients with anti-malaria drugs despite safety concerns raised by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Algeria claims to have had "great success" using hydroxychloroquine in combination with antibiotics...
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27th April 2020In a controversial move to mark the start of Ramadan, the Algerian government has eased restrictions in Blida – the province at the centre of the country's Covid-19 epidemic. A total lockdown of Blida imposed on March 23 has now been reduced to a partial curfew running from 2pm to 7am daily....
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15th April 2020The coronavirus situation in Algeria is "under control" according to President Tebboune, and "stable" according to the health minister. Despite these assurances, the level of testing for Covid-19 in Algeria remains low and of the 2,070 people so far confirmed as having been infected, 326 – 16% of...
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3rd April 2020In the Middle East and North Africa region, Algeria now has the highest death toll linked to coronavirus outside Iran. So far, 83 people have died in Algeria and the 25 deaths reported yesterday accounted for almost half of those in Arab countries. A major factor behind Algeria's high death rate...
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24th March 2020With new coronavirus cases in Algeria increasing at an alarming rate, on Monday President Abdelmadjid Tebboune announced a complete curfew in Blida province which is the seat of more than half of the 230 confirmed infections. Across the whole country, all non-food shops, restaurants and cafes...
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28th November 2019Amid preparations for a highly contentious presidential election in Algeria, the authorities have arrested Abdelhamid Amine, an artist who does satirical paintings and cartoons. Amine (@Nime_BD on Twitter) was taken into custody on Tuesday when plainclothes police raided his workplace in...
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13th October 2019Where is Gaïd Salah? That's the question many Algerians are asking. Following the resignation of President Bouteflika last April military chief Salah emerged as the regime's dominant figure but now he has suddenly vanished from sight. Theories abound, but evidence is scarce. According to the...
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19th September 2019The political crisis in Algeria is about to take a turn for the worse as the authorities attempt subdue street protests ahead of a presidential election. On Wednesday Gaïd Salah, the army's chief of staff, ordered police to stop buses and cars transporting demonstrators into the capital for...
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16th September 2019In a controversial move aimed at ending seven months of street protests, the Algerian authorities announced on Sunday that a presidential election will be held on 12 December. The announcement – which appears to have been made at the behest of Gaïd Salah, the country's influential...
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14th September 2019The protests in Algeria that began in February show no signs of fizzling out. On Friday, for the 30th week in succession, tens of thousands demonstrated in the capital and other cities – reportedly in increased numbers. According to the local TSA website it was the largest turnout since 5...
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9th September 2019Last Friday, for the 29th week in succession, demonstrators took to the streets of Algiers. It's now five months since they achieved their initial goal – triggering the resignation of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika after more than 20 years in power – but their demands go far beyond that. They...
