Libyan leader Khalifa Haftar has rejected a call from Russia and Turkey to implement a ceasefire beginning Sunday, and said the Libyan National Army will continue its offensive against Tripoli and the internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) based there. Haftar made his announcement through a LNA spokesman late…
Military leader Ahmed Gaïd Salah, the deputy minister of defense and Chief of Staff for the Algerian army, died on Monday following a heart attack, according to a statement from the presidency. Gaïd Salah was 79 years old. His death comes less than two weeks after the election of Abdelmadjid…
With Abdelmadjid Tebboune winning the election in Algeria, the new president was quick to pivot toward the opposition with promises of meaningful constitutional reforms, and a national dialogue to move the nation beyond its political crisis. Tebboune made the overtures following Thursday’s elections, which saw him claim 58.2 percent of…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Algerians are headed to the polls on Thursday for a presidential election postponed since April 18, but after a long year of heady highs and disappointing lows, in the end there are real questions about who will even be participating – and worse, how the country will recover from yet…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
With just two weeks before elections, protesters in Algeria showed no signs of stopping on Wednesday as stone-throwing crowds clashed with security forces using tear gas outside one candidate’s meeting site. Agence France Presse reports the presidential candidate, former prime minister Ali Benflis, held his meeting some 90 kilometers outside…
The United Nations addressed on Friday the global spread of unrest that has swept across nearly every continent, with both the UN Secretary General and the head of the UN human rights office in Geneva appealing for peaceful demonstrations and expressing concerns over violence. “Disquiet in peoples’ lives is leading…
Algerians have protested every week for more than six months now, demanding economic reforms and an embrace of democratic principles. Thousands continued to protest even after former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigned in April, and they haven’t stopped as the North African nation works its way toward a December 12 presidential…
Thousands of passengers were reported to be stranded on Saturday because of the Aigle Azur airline bankruptcy, as the company suspended operations on Friday night because of its financial woes. The French airline serving Algeria, Mali and Senegal issued a statement saying it could not assure any flights beyond that…
The Human Rights Watch organization said Tuesday that one of its staff has been deported from Algeria after a 10-day ordeal that saw him briefly detained followed by the seizure of his travel documents. Ahmed Benchemsi, a Middle East communications and advocacy director who holds dual citizenship in Morocco and…
Tunisians on Saturday bid farewell to President Beji Caid Essebsi, the 92-year-old leader who died Thursday at a military hospital in Tunis following years of service to the North African nation. Essebsi’s state funeral included throngs of people in the streets who came to honor him, lining the route between…
At least 74 people were arrested Thursday night in France after fans of the Algerian team, celebrating the quarterfinal victory in the African Cup of Nations, vandalized shops along the Champs Elysees in Paris and wreaked havoc in Marseille and beyond. Interior minister Christophe Canister confirmed the arrests as he…
Algeria’s interim leader will remain in place until the country holds elections, despite Tuesday marking the end of a 90-day term that began with the departure of former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika. Abdelkader Bensalah, a Bouteflika ally and Algeria’s parliament leader, stepped into the role following Bouteflika’s resignation in April. The…
The African union for sports journalists, following the lead of its Algerian counterparts, spoke out Friday against a decision to prevent Nazim Bessol – the journalist who reported the link between the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and French company Tactical Steel – from covering the African Cup of Nations…
On the question of Libya, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with his Tunisian and Algerian counterparts Wednesday to discuss the crisis, agreeing to press for a ceasefire and advance the cause of a Libyan political agreement jeopardized by the fighting in Tripoli. Shoukry, Tunisian Khemaies Jhinaoui and Algeria’s Ramtane…
President Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria resigned on Tuesday, ending weeks of speculation and confrontation. He followed the announcement with an emotional farewell letter to the Algerian people that recounted the successes of his long tenure but asked their forgiveness for his failings too. “Soon, Algeria will have a new president,…