News from Algeria 2006

[Al-khiyal]

Judges and lawyers accuse each other of bribery

[Al-khiyal]

Commonwealth Game 1500m bronze medalist Youcef Abdi has had three medals stolen from his home in Cronulla.

The two-time Australian champion is currently in Paris racing on the European Tour, and while he was away thieves broke into his house taking several items, including the medals.

Abdi pleaded from Paris for the medals to be returned.

"The medals don’t have a market value, they cannot sell them, but they do have an irreplaceable sentimental value that doesn't belong to anybody but the athlete who won it", Abdi said.

"I am pleading to this person to understand and send back the medals, I wouldn't ask this if I they could sell them and get money for them but in this case they can't sell those medals.

"Please I hope you have a heart to understand the value of the medals and send them back to the Cronulla Police".

Abdi moved to Australian from Algeria in 1996, and the medals stolen were won during the national titles.

Abdi's medals stolen

[Al-khiyal]

La brigade mobile de la police judiciaire (BMPJ) de la commune d’El-Khroub a arrêté, la semaine dernière, lors d’une patrouille dans la cité du 8-Mai 45, les dénommés B. H., 22 ans, et B. F., 28 ans, en possession de 22 grammes de kif traité ainsi qu’un sabre.

Présentés au parquet, B. H. a été placé sous mandat de dépôt alors que B. F. a bénéficié de la liberté provisoire. La même BMPJ a pu mettre hors d’état de nuire cinq dealers âgés entre 22 et 36 ans, activant au niveau de la nouvelle ville de Massinissa.

Les membres de la bande avaient en leur possession 30 g de kif qu’ils s’apprêtaient à vendre. De leur côté, les éléments de la quatrième sûreté urbaine de Daksi ont arrêté B. R., 34 ans, repris de justice qui était en possession de 13 plaquettes de kif traité et de 11 comprimés de psychotropes.

Selon des informations recueillies auprès de la cellule de communication de la police, B. F. est aussi poursuivi dans quatre autres affaires de vol par effraction et dilapidation de biens d’autrui. Parmi les victimes de ces vols, figurent la direction de l’hydraulique et la CNAC.

Le malfaiteur a pu accéder au parking desdites administrations et subtiliser, après avoir brisé les vitres des voitures, des radios et un appareil de relevés topographiques. Par ailleurs, la première sûreté urbaine d’Aouati-Mustapha a procédé à l’arrestation, en plein centre-ville, de B. R., 39 ans, en possession de kif traité.

Les mêmes services ont arrêté B. L., 21 ans et R. H., 21 ans, suite à la plainte de la victime répondant aux initiales de B.H. Les malfaiteurs se sont introduits dans le domicile du plaignant où ils ont dérobé une télévision et une moto.

Cette dernière a pu être récupérée par la police. Présentés au parquet, les malfaiteurs ont été placés sous mandat de dépôt. En outre, durant la semaine écoulée, les services des différentes sûretés urbaines de Constantine ont, pour divers délits, présenté 24 personnes devant la justice.

16 d’entre elles ont été placées sous mandat de dépôt et 8 autres ont bénéficié de la liberté provisoire.

Arrestation de plusieurs dealers à Constantine

[Al-khiyal]

The Judge of instruction of the correctional court of Sedaikia at Oran has ordered five students to be placed under provisional detention, while 13 other students have been released in the case relating to Sunday's confrontations in the girls' university residence between representatives of the National Union of Algerian Students and security agents.

It is expected that the 17 students, who were arrested by security services as a consequence of these confrontations, will appear today before the criminal court. They are accused of having humiliated an employee during his service, destroying the State’s property and harming the general system.

The students’ organization has designated lawyers fto represent their militants, the chief of the bureau of wilaya of this body has denied that arrested students have used any kind of weapons.

Differing versions exist on the reasons for the confrontations which led to the injury of six people. The National Union of Algerian Students has indicated that it has started when the Regional manager of University services decided to transfer his bureau to the cited university residence, because of the closure of his former one by various students’ organizations in the last few months, to where the organization (the NUAS) has had its office. The administration affirms, however, that this organization has no representation in the university residence and had presented a list of demands threatening to urge girls to stage a walk out if the administration did not answer all the demands. It should be mentioned that the Regional Director has refused to comment on these events in spite of many attempts to contact the Regional manager.

>>>Source<<<

[Al-khiyal]

A home made bomb exploded yesterday in Boumerdes (about 50 km east of Algiers), targeting a patrol of the national security, at four o’clock in the evening. This operation, executed by the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), led to the injury of three security agents, one of whom was seriously injured.

The city of Boumerdes experienced panic and anarchy after the explosion of the bomb in the main entry of the weekly market near the bus station; some witnesses indicated that only the timing of the explosion permitted the avoidance of a large number of civilian casualties.

The explosion targeted a patrol of the security forces which carrying out traffic control, a home made bomb was used, and it was put in a plastic bag and hidden among rubbish.

A security service source has indicated to El Khabar that the explosion happened when the car arrived; the same sources indicate that the bomb was equipped with remote control, which means, the source declared,that the executing party was targeting security agents without exception, the same source added that this method is used by the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat.

After the explosion the security forces commenced a large-scale search and investigation. Waiting for the completion of the investigation El Khabar staff noticed a number of arrested people in the seat of security of the wilaya of Boumerdes. Sources indicate that explosion caused three injured, one of whom was taken to the hospital of Thenea where received emergency surgery on a stomach wound.

It is believed that the terrorist organization of the GSPC, directed by Dourdoukel, Abu Musab Abdelouadoud, was involved in the explosion. It is the second bomb in Boumerdes in a few days. The city experienced an explosion last May near the train station, which caused two injured among security agents, and on that occasion another remote control bomb was dismantled not far from the first site.

Panic among inhabitants and policemen wounded

Update

An improvised bomb exploded on Tuesday afternoon at a bus terminal in Boumerdes, 50 km east of the capital Algiers, leaving three policemen wounded, the Algerian daily Liberte reported on its wedsite Wednesday.

Among the three wounded, one was still in a serious condition, while the other two were treated for minor injuries and discharged from hospital, the newspaper said.

The bomb exploded at the entrance of the bus terminal where a team of policemen had been sent to control traffic movement.

On the same day, one terrorist was shot dead by security forces in Jijel province, some 230 km northeast of the capital Algiers, the same newspaper said....

Three Algerian policemen wounded in bomb explosion

[Al-khiyal]

Algeria formally recognizes Montenegro's independence

[Al-khiyal]

Ninety students from the university level have benefited from the scholarships provided by the Algerian government so far, while 45 others are expected to get scholarships this year.

Speaking to The Guardian in an exclusive interview yesterday, Algeria's Ambassador to Tanzania Abdelmoun’aam Ahriz said that the scholarships will be for students of almost every field.

’’We are getting students for different courses in the fields which take minimum period of three to five years the latter for those who take medicine,’’ he explained.

Ahriz said his country has been supporting Tanzania in many sectors apart from education.

’’As an African country, Algeria feels responsible to support Tanzania politically and economically in different sectors. We also get political support from the government of Tanzania,’’ he said.

Talking about the hunger crisis which the country (Tanzania) experienced recently, Ahriz said he congratulates the government for ensuring even small farmers received free seeds for planting and cereals for consumption.

’’Take Algeria for example, about 80 per cent of our land is desert and we still practice agriculture very well. We get good results because we do not rely on seasonal rains alone,’’ he said.

He said through irrigation systems the government works hand in hand with small scale farmers to ensure enough production of food.

The ambassador added: ’’We provide farmers with grants, and facilities that make them able to get loans from banks, as well as giving free land and seeds to farmers.’’

He urged the Tanzania government to work closely with small scale farmers and support them the way they are doing at this time of famine.

’’Provision of facilities for modern agriculture based on irrigation system in particular and subsidising fertilizers are essential factors for the success of the agricultural sector in this country,’’he said.

Meanwhile, the government of Algeria has reached an advanced stage of lasting peace in the country.

This observation was given yesterday by the Algerian Ambassador to Tanzania, Abdelmoun’aam Ahriz in an exclusive interview with The Guardian.

Ahriz said the stage has been reached after President Abdelaziz Bouteflika initiated as peace and national reconciliation process in 1999.

’’The law on the civil reconciliation was approved by the referendum the same year and the president declared amnesty for thousands of individuals under the same law,’’said Ahriz.

The ambassador said the return of thousands of individuals to their home (Algeria) convinced the deeply divided citizens knowing fully that there is no alternative to peace.

He said a nation that is capable of forgiving has every chance to better negotiate concord among its children.

The envoy said many armed groups disbanded and surrendered their arms by the deadline of January 13th 2000.

’’It was after the positive results of the law on civil concord that Algerians supported massively in September 2005 by 97.36 per cent the draft Charter on Peace and national reconciliation,’’ said Ambassador Ahriz.

He noted that the new charter complements the process of national reconciliation.

’’The charter calls upon the state to take appropriate measures to preserve the national identity of its sovereign people as a foundation for reconciliation,’’ he stressed.

’’Algeria has been experiencing terrorism phenomena from 1991 to 2000 without any assistance from any foreign country, global international organizations, the US or any other friendly country, he noted.

During the period more than 150,000 Algerians lost their lives, 12,000 missing and the whole conflict cost the country over USD 30bn.

45 Tanzanians to benefit from scholarships in Algeria