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Trial of Algerian President's Son Stirs Controversy

FILE PHOTO: Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is pictured at the National People's Assembly (APN) in Algiers, Algeria June 20, 2017. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina
FILE PHOTO: Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is pictured at the National People's Assembly (APN) in Algiers, Algeria June 20, 2017. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina
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Trial of Algerian President's Son Stirs Controversy

FILE PHOTO: Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is pictured at the National People's Assembly (APN) in Algiers, Algeria June 20, 2017. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina
FILE PHOTO: Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is pictured at the National People's Assembly (APN) in Algiers, Algeria June 20, 2017. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina

The trial of the son of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune opened on Wednesday, stirring nationwide controversy.

Khalid Tebboune is on trial in a corruption and drug trafficking case, alongside real-estate mogul Kamal Sheikhi, dubbed the butcher, and other suspects that include two judges.

This comes amid ongoing protests against Tebboune with demonstrators saying he was placed in power by loyalists to the former regime of Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

The defendants were arrested in May 2018 after the seizure of seven quintals of cocaine on a ship. The drugs were hidden in a red meat shipment belonging to Sheikhi, which he imported from Brazil as part of a commercial deal with the Algerian army.

According to investigations carried out by the gendarmerie research group, many of Sheikhi’s buildings in the capital were constructed in record time thanks to exceptional facilities he received as a result of Tebboune’s intervention at a time his father was housing minister in the former cabinet.

Tebboune would make it easier for Sheikhi to be granted construction permits.

Authorities had relocated Tebboune from a cell in El Harrach prison to the penitentiary’s clinic. This was done to ensure his safety and in fear of other inmates attacking him now that he is the son of the president.

A fierce debate among politicians regarding the way the judiciary will deal with the president's son. Many questions arose, such as: Will he be acquitted despite the fact that investigations confirmed that he personally benefited from the relationship with Sheikhi?

If Tebboune is convicted, this will inevitably hurt the president's reputation, both domestically and internationally, because his personal involvement in the case will also be confirmed.

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Ankara: Assad Does Not Want Peace in Syria

Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
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Ankara: Assad Does Not Want Peace in Syria

Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has stated that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is unwilling to pursue peace in Syria and warned that Israel’s efforts to spread war across the Middle East are undermining the environment fostered by the Astana Process.

Fidan emphasized the importance of Russian and Iranian efforts within the framework of the Astana Process to maintain calm on the ground, pointing to ongoing consultations with the US regarding the Syrian crisis.

Speaking during a parliamentary session discussing the 2025 budget of the Foreign Ministry, Fidan reiterated Türkiye’s expectation that the dialogue proposed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be approached strategically by the Syrian government, with priority given to the interests of the Syrian people.

Regarding Erdogan’s invitation to Assad for a meeting to discuss the normalization of ties between Ankara and Damascus, Fidan remarked that the matter depends on political will, stressing that the Turkish president has demonstrated his readiness at the highest level.

Last week, Erdogan reiterated the possibility of a meeting with Assad, but Russia, which mediates the normalization talks between Ankara and Damascus, ruled out such a meeting or high-level engagements in the near future.

Russian Presidential Envoy to Syria Alexander Lavrentiev attributed the impasse to Türkiye’s refusal to meet Damascus’ demand for a withdrawal from northern Syria, accusing Ankara of acting as an “occupying state”.

Although Türkiye has not officially responded to Lavrentiev’s comments, which reflect a shift in Russia’s stance, Fidan stated in a televised interview last week that Russia remains “somewhat neutral” regarding the normalization process. He also urged the Syrian government to create conditions for the return of 10 million Syrian refugees.

Türkiye maintains that its military presence in northern Syria prevents the country’s division, blocks the establishment of a “terror corridor” along its southern border, and deters new waves of refugees from entering its territory.

Fidan outlined his country’s key objectives in Syria, which include eradicating terrorist groups (such as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party and the Syrian Democratic Forces), preserving Syria’s territorial unity, advancing the political process, and ensuring the safe and voluntary return of Syrian refugees.

Meanwhile, Turkish artillery targeted villages and positions controlled by the Manbij Military Council, affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), whose main component is the People’s Protection Units (YPG).

On Friday, fierce clashes erupted between the Syrian National Army factions and the SDF in western Tel Abyad, northern Raqqa. Simultaneously, Turkish artillery strikes reportedly killed two SDF members and injured others, with reports of captives and missing personnel.

In retaliation, the SDF shelled Turkish bases in the Ain Issa countryside. Turkish forces responded by deploying military reinforcements amid heightened alert at their bases in Raqqa’s countryside, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).