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Algeria President Vows to Recover Money Looted Abroad

President Abdelmadjid Tebboune vows to recover “gang funds.” (Reuters)
President Abdelmadjid Tebboune vows to recover “gang funds.” (Reuters)
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Algeria President Vows to Recover Money Looted Abroad

President Abdelmadjid Tebboune vows to recover “gang funds.” (Reuters)
President Abdelmadjid Tebboune vows to recover “gang funds.” (Reuters)

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has vowed to recover funds smuggled abroad by government officials during former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s rule.

Tebboune stressed he would begin confiscating property and money obtained within Algeria, in an implicit reference to two prime ministers, several former ministers, and businessmen, who have been jailed on corruption charges.

His remarks were made during an interview with two newspapers at the presidential headquarters on Sunday evening that was broadcast on state television.

He referred to legal measures taken to contact governments of several countries where the deposits of convicted officials and others wanted by the judiciary are kept.

The amount and location of the transferred money is not yet specified neither is the amount money illegally obtained in Algeria.

A group of officials close to Bouteflika is involved in the “looted money” case. These are topped by former Premiers Ahmed Ouyahia and Abdelmalek Sellal and several ministers, including former Industry Minister Abdesselam Bouchouareb residing abroad, as well as former intelligence chiefs Mohamed Mediene, Bachir Tartag and Said Bouteflika.

Tebboune said during the presidential election campaign in late 2019 that he had “a plan to recover the smuggled money.” However, his opponents have questioned the seriousness of his pledges in this regard.

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Lebanon Parliament Adjourns for Consultations after Failing to Elect Aoun in First Round

The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
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Lebanon Parliament Adjourns for Consultations after Failing to Elect Aoun in First Round

The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)
The Lebanese Parliament building a day before a session to elect the Lebanese president, in Beirut, Lebanon, 08 January 2025. (EPA)

Lebanon's parliament speaker Nabih Berri adjourned a session held on Thursday to elect a president for two hours of consultations, after a first round of voting failed to produce enough votes for Lebanese army commander Joseph Aoun.
Aoun needs 86 votes to be elected but received 71. Two political sources said he was likely to cross the 86-vote threshold in a second session on Thursday.

Lawmakers began the session amid expectations it could see Aoun elected as president following a vacancy of more than two years.
The 128-lawmaker chamber, which has failed to reach consensus a dozen times amid tensions between the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement and its opponents, started discussions at 11:00 am (0900 GMT).
Aoun, no relation to the former president, is widely seen as the preferred candidate of the United States, whose assistance Lebanon will need as it seeks to rebuild after a 14-month conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah previously backed another candidate, Suleiman Franjieh, the leader of Marada movement with close ties to former Syrian President Bashar Assad.
However, on Wednesday, Franjieh announced he had withdrawn from the race and endorsed Aoun, apparently clearing the way for the army chief.
Lebanon’s fractious sectarian power-sharing system is prone to deadlock, both for political and procedural reasons. The small, crisis-battered Mediterranean country has been through several extended presidential vacancies, with the longest lasting nearly 2 1/2 years between May 2014 and October 2016. It ended when former President Michel Aoun was elected.
As a sitting army commander, Joseph Aoun is technically barred from becoming president by Lebanon's constitution. The ban has been waived before, but it means that Aoun faces additional procedural hurdles.
Under normal circumstances, a presidential candidate in Lebanon can be elected by a two-thirds majority of the 128-member house in the first round of voting, or by a simple majority in a subsequent round.
But because of the constitutional issues surrounding his election, Aoun would need a two-thirds majority even in the second round.
Other contenders include Jihad Azour, a former finance minister who is now the director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund; and Elias al-Baysari, the acting head of Lebanon’s General Security agency.
A president is needed to appoint a permanent prime minister and cabinet. The caretaker government that has run Lebanon for the last two years has reduced powers because it was not appointed by a sitting president.
The next government will face daunting challenges apart from implementing the ceasefire agreement that ended the Israel-Hezbollah war and seeking funds for reconstruction.
Lebanon is six years into an economic and financial crisis that decimated the country's currency and wiped out the savings of many Lebanese. The cash-strapped state electricity company provides only a few hours of power a day.
The country's leaders reached a preliminary agreement with the IMF for a bail-out package in 2022 but have made limited progress on reforms required to clinch the deal.