Algeria Upholds Conviction of Journalist; Rights Groups Fear New Crackdown

People gather in a show of support for Khaled Drareni, outside the court house Tuesday, Sept.8, 2020 in Algiers. (AP)
People gather in a show of support for Khaled Drareni, outside the court house Tuesday, Sept.8, 2020 in Algiers. (AP)
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Algeria Upholds Conviction of Journalist; Rights Groups Fear New Crackdown

People gather in a show of support for Khaled Drareni, outside the court house Tuesday, Sept.8, 2020 in Algiers. (AP)
People gather in a show of support for Khaled Drareni, outside the court house Tuesday, Sept.8, 2020 in Algiers. (AP)

An Algerian appeals court upheld the conviction of a journalist on Tuesday in what rights campaigners called a new crackdown on dissent aimed at preventing the revival of mass protests that toppled veteran ruler Abdelaziz Bouteflika last year.

The Hirak popular protest movement brought thousands of Algerians to the streets for weekly demonstrations, which continued even after Bouteflika quit and a new president was elected in December.

A judicial source and a rights group that defends detainees said the appeals court had upheld the conviction of journalist Khaled Drareni on charges which include threatening national unity and “inciting unarmed gatherings”.

His sentence was reduced to two years from a three-year term imposed by a lower court last month.

The mass demonstrations in Algeria lasted more than a year until they were finally halted in March by a coronavirus lockdown. Some campaigners say they plan to return to the streets once the lockdown is lifted.

They demand the military-backed ruling elite give way to a new generation of leadership.

Drareni has been in detention since his arrest in March after he attended demonstrations.

The court in Algiers also confirmed four-month prison sentences against two other activists in the protest movement, Samir Benlarbi and Slimane Hamitouche, for inciting unarmed gatherings, the source and the National Committee for the Release of Detainees said.

“These harsh sentences underline the broader crackdown on freedoms in the country, and confirm an alarming pattern of prosecutions targeting journalists and activists who called for more democracy and respect for the rule of law in Algeria,” rights watchdog Amnesty International said in a statement.



UN Chief Urges Yemen's Houthis to Release Aid Workers

(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
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UN Chief Urges Yemen's Houthis to Release Aid Workers

(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)
(FILES) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres delivers a speech at the opening of the 58th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, on February 24, 2025. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday demanded Yemen's Houthis to release dozens of aid workers, including UN staff, a year after their arrest.

The Iran-backed Houthis, who control much of the war-torn country, detained 13 UN personnel and more than 50 employees of aid groups last June, AFP reported.

"I renew my call for their immediate and unconditional release," Guterres said in a statement issued by the office of his special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg.

"The UN and its humanitarian partners should never be targeted, arrested or detained while carrying out their mandates for the benefit of the people they serve," he added.

The Houthis at the time claimed an "American-Israeli spy cell" was operating under the cover of aid groups -- an accusation firmly rejected by the UN.

Guterres also lamented the "deplorable tragedy" of the death in detention of a World Food Program staffer in February.