Algeria: Mystery Surrounds Corruption Case Raised against Former Presidential Candidate

People are seen gathered for a mass anti-government protest in the center of the Algerian capital Algiers, Dec. 17, 2019. (File photo: AFP)
People are seen gathered for a mass anti-government protest in the center of the Algerian capital Algiers, Dec. 17, 2019. (File photo: AFP)
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Algeria: Mystery Surrounds Corruption Case Raised against Former Presidential Candidate

People are seen gathered for a mass anti-government protest in the center of the Algerian capital Algiers, Dec. 17, 2019. (File photo: AFP)
People are seen gathered for a mass anti-government protest in the center of the Algerian capital Algiers, Dec. 17, 2019. (File photo: AFP)

Algeria’s former Minister of Culture Azzedine Mihoubi rejected corruption accusations raised against him claiming he breached regulations during his tenure between 2016 to 2019, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, the source quoted Mihoubi as saying he was not informed of any administrative or judicial action taken against him, after reports indicated he was banned from traveling.

Mihoubi, who was also a former presidential candidate, said he is facing a huge defamation campaign and refuses all corruption accusations.

Ennahar newspaper reported Thursday that the authorities had issued an order banning Mihoubi from traveling as part of investigations into corruption accusations.

The daily said the decision includes family members of the former minister, who temporarily heads the Democratic National Rally (RND), since the imprisonment of its Secretary-General, former Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia on corruption charges.

On the same day, Ennahar announced it will suspend its print after the government pulled its paid ads in the newspaper.

The newspaper belongs to an Ennahar media group, which was the media arm of the former ruling regime. Its owner and manager Mohamed Mokadem,was held in custody last February on charges of “breach of exchange regulations,” “blackmail to gain undue advantage” and “holding foreign bank accounts.”

If pursued, Mihoubi will be questioned by an investigative judge at the Supreme Court, which follows cases of ministers and top-ranking officials.

Mihoubi, 61, is a writer and poet and has many published books. He assumed many official responsibilities, including the Minister of Information.

Political sources linked the ambiguity of Mihoubi’s case with the case of a well-known TV producer, Samira Hadj Djilani, who was accused of “money laundering”, “illicit transfer of capital”, and “misuse of the government job”.

Djilani is a senior official in the culture sector and has worked for many years with several ministers.

Meanwhile, lawyers reported that the defense of former Minister of Culture, Khalida Toumi, intends to request her release for the second time, knowing that the Appeals Court rejected the first one.

Toumi is accused of squandering public funds and awarding illegal privileges, but her family believes she is paying the price “for her extreme loyalty to former President Bouteflika.”

Political and media circles expect many important cases to be submitted to the judiciary after the country had confronted the novel coronavirus.

They believe the cases will relate to several ministers and officials who were imprisoned after Bouteflika stepped down on April 2, 2019.



Israel Keeps Up Gaza Bombardment as Ceasefire Talks Intensify

Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
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Israel Keeps Up Gaza Bombardment as Ceasefire Talks Intensify

Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

US and Arab mediators are working round-the-clock to hammer out a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, sources close to the talks said, while in the Gaza Strip medics said Israeli strikes had killed 13 Palestinians on Thursday.
The mediators, at talks in Egypt and Qatar, seek to forge a deal to pause the 14-month-old war in the Hamas-ruled enclave that would include a release of hostages seized from Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, along with Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, Reuters said.
Mediators had managed to narrow some gaps on previous sticking points but differences remained, the sources said.
In Gaza, medics said at least 13 Palestinians were killed overnight in separate Israeli airstrikes, including on two houses in Gaza City and a central camp.
Residents of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, where the army has operated since October, said forces blew up clusters of houses overnight.
"The longer those talks last, the more destruction and death takes place in Gaza. Jabalia, Beit Hanoun, and Beit Lahiya are being wiped out, Rafah too," said Adel, 60, a resident of Jabalia, who is now displaced in Gaza City.
Palestinians accuse Israel of ethnic cleansing in those areas by depopulating residents to create buffer zones. Israel denies this and says its campaign aims to wipe out Hamas, a militant group, and to prevent it from regrouping.
Israel accuses Hamas of exploiting civilian infrastructure and the population as a human shield for its activities. Hamas denies it and accuses Israel of trying to justify the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians.
PHASED OR COMPREHENSIVE?
Sources close to the mediation efforts said Hamas had pushed for a one-package deal but Israel wanted a phased one. Talks are focused on a first-phase release of hostages, dead or alive, as well as a number of Palestinians jailed by Israel.
On Tuesday, the sides discussed the numbers and categories of those to be released, but things have yet to be finalized, said a source who spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the talks.
The source said one issue was Israel's demand to retain the right to act against any possible military threat from Gaza and the stationing of Israeli forces during phases of the deal.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday Israel will have security control over Gaza with full freedom of action after defeating Hamas in the enclave.
Israel launched its air and ground assault on Gaza after Hamas-led fighters attacked Israeli communities 14 months ago, killing 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel says about 100 hostages are still being held, but it is unclear how many are alive.
Israel's campaign has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, displaced most of the 2.3 million population and reduced much of the coastal enclave to ruins.
On Thursday, Human Rights Watch said Israel had killed thousands of Palestinians in Gaza by denying them clean water which it says legally amounts to acts of genocide and extermination.
Israel's foreign ministry accused the rights group of lying, writing on X that Israel had facilitated the continuous flow of water and humanitarian aid into Gaza since the start of the war despite constant attacks by Hamas.