Pro-Poll Regime Trolls Counter Algeria Protest Activists

Activists in Algeria have staged mass protests against a December 12 election they see as an elite attempt to cling to power. (AFP)
Activists in Algeria have staged mass protests against a December 12 election they see as an elite attempt to cling to power. (AFP)
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Pro-Poll Regime Trolls Counter Algeria Protest Activists

Activists in Algeria have staged mass protests against a December 12 election they see as an elite attempt to cling to power. (AFP)
Activists in Algeria have staged mass protests against a December 12 election they see as an elite attempt to cling to power. (AFP)

Social networks set alight the months-long protest movement against Algeria's establishment, but as a contentious presidential poll looms, bots and trolls are staging an online comeback to bolster the regime.

The protests which erupted in February forced the resignation of veteran president Abdelaziz Bouteflika within six weeks.

Activists, who have made savvy use of social media, vowed to continue their struggle following Bouteflika's departure and have staged mass protests against a December 12 election they see as an elite attempt to cling to power.

Arabic and French hashtags including #FreeDemocraticAlgeria and #TheyMustAllResign have gone viral online, echoing chants in the streets as protesters urge a boycott of the presidential poll, reported AFP.

Algerians also took to Twitter and Facebook to ridicule interim president Abdelkader Bensalah's comments that the impact of protests had been overblown.

But with the approach of the vote, anonymous trolls and automated bots are sowing discord in an apparent bid to discredit the protest movement and revive support for the regime.

'Electronic flies'

Immediately after the date of the presidential election was announced in mid-September, two hashtags opposing the protest movement's boycott call appeared and quickly spread on Twitter: #Algeria_vote and #Don't_Speak_In_My_Name.

The protest movement has dubbed the trolls behind this counter-offensive "electronic flies", saying they also lodge complaints against anti-establishment pages and posts, doctor protesters' slogans and slander activists.

Marc Owen Jones, an assistant professor at the Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Doha who studies propaganda and disinformation on Arab social media networks, has analyzed some 20,000 tweets under these hashtags.

A very high number of accounts were "suspicious, generated by trolls or bots", he said.

And "a significant number of accounts were created in September, including a large proportion... in the space of just two days," he told AFP.

These hashtags are "clear evidence of a disinformation campaign", Jones concluded.

Entrapped by posts

Activists say they have also been targeted by false reporting against their content, a tactic they say has led to pages being suspended and the removal of purported legitimate content.

Social networks allow users to flag "indecent" content, but regime opponents say multiple complaints can automatically trigger suspensions and removals.

Lokman, who did not want to give his full name, is a co-founder of "Fake News Dz", a Facebook page which identifies falsehoods spread on the Algerian net.

He said his daily monitoring has found "an organized campaign to report pages which directly attack the establishment".

Said Salhi, vice-president of the Algerian League for the Defense of Human Rights, lamented that "it's impossible to know who hides behind these attacks -- their accounts are anonymous".

Algerian internet users have launched a digital campaign denouncing Facebook's policy, which they accuse of undermining their freedom of expression.

In November, they organized sit-ins in front of the firm's offices in many European capitals.

"Algerians rely on Facebook to share their ideas in the face of an illegitimate regime," said one students' association.

Yet the social media giant does not react to "hate speech by trolls" against the protest movement, the association complained.

'Systematic arrests'

Salhi noted that unlike the pro-government players online, activists do not hide their true identity, leaving them exposed.

Simple social media posts therefore sometimes land government critics in jail, he said, pointing to the "systematic arrest of bloggers", activists or journalists in recent weeks.

Given the authorities' lockdown of traditional media, "Facebook is a last resort for activists, but it is also an information space for the security services," he warned.

On Thursday, the prosecutor's office in Oran, some 350 kilometers west of Algiers, demanded 18 months jail time for renowned cartoonist Abdelhamid Amine, whose dark depictions of Algerian leaders have been an online hit.

Human Rights Watch has warned that police reports in court files show "a special brigade on electronic crimes has been monitoring the social media activities" of some protest leaders.

The rights group warned that "the monitoring reports form the basis for vaguely worded charges of harming state security or undermining national unity."



Washington Furious over Drone Attacks in Iraq

A flock of birds flies past burning gas flares at the Dora (Daura) Oil Refinery Complex in Baghdad on July 15, 2025. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP)
A flock of birds flies past burning gas flares at the Dora (Daura) Oil Refinery Complex in Baghdad on July 15, 2025. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP)
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Washington Furious over Drone Attacks in Iraq

A flock of birds flies past burning gas flares at the Dora (Daura) Oil Refinery Complex in Baghdad on July 15, 2025. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP)
A flock of birds flies past burning gas flares at the Dora (Daura) Oil Refinery Complex in Baghdad on July 15, 2025. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP)

While the US embassy in Baghdad on Tuesday denounced recent drone attacks, including ones that hit “critical infrastructure” across the country, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani welcomed the operations of American companies in Iraq, particularly in the oil sector.

Al-Sudani spoke following a meeting with Matthew Zais, Vice President of the American oil company HKN Energy, in the presence of the US Chargé d’Affaires in Iraq.

The two sides signed a memorandum of principles to invest in the Hamrin oil fields, with the aim of reaching promising development frameworks to optimize their exploitation.

Baghdad and Washington share a complex relationship as the two sides have different perspectives on many issues, including armed factions, reconstruction, the future of the Popular Mobilization Forces and Baghdad's relationship with Tehran.

On Tuesday, as the Iraqi Oil Minister was signing an understanding with HKN Energy, the US embassy in Baghdad issued a statement denouncing recent drone attacks in Iraq, including ones that hit oil fields in the autonomous Kurdistan region.

Last month, drone strikes targeted radar systems at two military bases near Baghdad and in southern Iraq. The attacks are believed to be launched by armed militias loyal to Iran.

In its statement, the US embassy said: “The United States condemns the recent drone attacks throughout Iraq, including the July 14 and July 15 drone attacks on critical infrastructure at the Khormala and Sarsang oil fields in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.”

It urged the Iraqi government to exercise its authority to prevent armed actors from launching these attacks against sites within its own territory, including locations where Iraqi and international companies have invested in Iraq's future.

“These attacks are unacceptable, undermine Iraq's sovereignty, and hurt Iraq's efforts to attract foreign investment. We urge the Government of Iraq to investigate who is behind these attacks and hold them accountable,” the statement noted.

In a similar statement, the US Consulate General in Erbil also strongly condemned the recent drone attacks, calling the assaults a violation of Iraqi sovereignty and a threat to the country’s economic stability.

Despite the official Iraqi condemnations and the government’s efforts to investigate the drone attacks, observers say Baghdad is too weak to prevent militias from attacking several military sites and bases at Camp Taji, north of Baghdad, and in the southern Nasiriyah city.

“The Iraqi government does not seek to open a decisive battle with the factions,” according to a source close to the forces of the Coordination Framework.

In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat published on Monday, Al-Sudani commented on the drone attacks in Baghdad and Nasiriyah saying there is an investigation by a specialized technical committee.

“I am closely following this probe. It was a clear attack using drones. As you know, it's not easy to detect these aircraft. Today, this technology is used in attacks and to create instability. But this matter will definitely not pass without consequences.”

On Tuesday, the drone attack halted production at the Sarsang oilfield in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.

Ghias Sorchi, a leading member at the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) urged parties to wait for the results of the investigations.

He noted that “those involved in the attacks do not want stability in the region, and if they are known, we will sue them in Baghdad and in international forums.”

However, Dr. Firas Elias, a professor of International Relations at the University of Mosul, said the drone attacks on vital oil and gas sites in the Kurdistan Region carries a political dimension due to the escalating disputes between Baghdad and Erbil over key issues, most notably the salaries of the Region’s civil servants.

“The drone attacks came as Erbil hinted it could withdraw from the political process, which means more problems with Baghdad and less potential to solve conflicting issues, especially with regard to the oil file in general and the issue of salaries,” Elias said.

Last May, tensions were high between Erbil and Baghdad after Iraq’s Federal Finance Minister, Taif Sami, ordered the suspension of salary payments to employees in the Kurdistan Region.

Elias said every time Erbil tries to increase its pressure on Baghdad, such attacks will escalate.