The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

Algiers launches arrest warrants against activists accused of "terrorism"

2021-03-22T00:25:30.997Z


An Algiers court issued Sunday March 21 four international arrest warrants for four activists established abroad, influencers and a leader of a banned Islamist movement, accused in particular of belonging to a terrorist group . The people targeted are Mohamed Larbi Zeitout, a former diplomat residing in the United Kingdom, Amir Boukhors, blogger known as "Amir Dz", Hichem Aboud, a journalist, and


An Algiers court issued Sunday March 21 four international arrest warrants for four activists established abroad, influencers and a leader of a banned Islamist movement, accused in particular of belonging to a terrorist group .

The people targeted are Mohamed Larbi Zeitout, a former diplomat residing in the United Kingdom, Amir Boukhors, blogger known as "Amir Dz", Hichem Aboud, a journalist, and a certain Mohamed Abdellah.

Read also: Algeria: these sympathizers who tire of a Hirak with no political outlet

Larbi Zeitout, 57, founded in 2007 the Islamist movement Rachad, the regime's bête noire, illegal in Algeria.

He is one of the main leaders.

He was posted to the Algerian Embassy in Libya in 1991. Then in 1995 he went into exile in London after resigning from the diplomatic service.

According to the authorities, Rachad brings together former militants of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS, dissolved in March 1992).

This movement is accused of seeking to infiltrate and involve in violence the pro-democracy movement of Hirak, born in February 2019 and which peacefully calls for a radical change of the political “system”.

The former Algerian diplomat is being prosecuted for

"management and financing of a terrorist group targeting state security and national unity, forgery and use of forgery and money laundering as part of a criminal gang"

, according to a press release published by the official APS agency.

Read also: In Algeria, a referendum criticized on the post-Hirak

Blogger Amir Dz (38), journalist Hichem Aboud (65) and Mohamed Abdellah are prosecuted for

"joining a terrorist group targeting state security and national unity, financing a terrorist group targeting state security and money laundering in the context of a criminal gang, ”

the statement said without mentioning the name of the offending group.

Based in France, Amir DZ is the author of numerous videos hostile in particular to the power in place in Algiers.

As for Hichem Aboud, he presents himself as a former member of the Algerian secret services.

He was sentenced last February to seven years in prison in absentia.

He fled Algeria via Tunisia in August 2013 when he was under a ban on leaving the national territory.

He now lives in France.

If the first three defendants are very prolific on social networks, especially since the start of Hirak, Mohamed Abdellah, who lives abroad, is unknown to the general public.

Read also: Algeria: the president tries to regain control

In addition, the same prosecutor on Sunday requested the placement under a warrant of committal of a certain Ahmed Mansouri, a former Islamist repentant activist, arrested on February 28 and since then in pre-trial detention.

Ahmed Mansouri, a former member of the FIS,

"joined the terrorist groups and was condemned in 1994 to the death penalty before benefiting from the provisions of the Civil Concord"

, indicates the statement of the prosecutor of the court of Bir Mourad Rais in Algiers .

According to the press release,

"technical investigations"

confirmed that Ahmed Mansouri had established contacts in particular with Amir Dz, Hichem Aboud and Mohamed Abdellah in order to

"set up plans to attack public order, in particular the exploitation of Hirak (...) in order to bring it out of its peaceful character ”

.

The Algerian justice action comes as the Hirak once again mobilizes thousands of Algerians every week in the streets against the regime, while President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has called legislative elections on June 12.

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2021-03-22

You may like

News/Politics 2024-03-12T12:23:38.275Z

Trends 24h

News/Politics 2024-03-28T06:04:53.137Z

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.