Ahead of National Press Day, Algerian Journalists Protest against Media Restrictions

Algerian protesters rally in support of journalist Khaled Drareni. (AFP)
Algerian protesters rally in support of journalist Khaled Drareni. (AFP)
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Ahead of National Press Day, Algerian Journalists Protest against Media Restrictions

Algerian protesters rally in support of journalist Khaled Drareni. (AFP)
Algerian protesters rally in support of journalist Khaled Drareni. (AFP)

Dozens of Algerian journalists from public and private media outlets rallied in front of the press syndicate in Algiers on Monday, calling for the release of detained journalist Khaled Drareni and protesting against the authorities' harassment of the media and the judicial and security persecution of journalists.

The rally was held as the country gears up to mark National Press Day on October 22.

Drareni, a correspondent for Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and French TV5, was sentenced to two years in prison on charges of "inciting an unarmed gathering" and "endangering national unity".

The protesters chanted in support of Drareni and called for the establishment of a “civil, non-military state”, one of the most important demands of the Hirak protest movement that toppled the regime of former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika last year.

They denounced accusations by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune claiming Drareni “gave information to the French embassy in Algeria.” However, this issue was not mentioned in his judicial file, which is still under appeal at the Supreme Court.

Minister of Justice, Belkacem Zeghmati, had previously stated that Drareni is being prosecuted in a case that has nothing to do with his journalistic activity. His lawyers refute the claims.

Drareni was arrested in March while photographing the anti-government protests. He was later summoned for interrogation by the security forces, where he was questioned about the photos and news he published about the popular demonstrations.

Another journalist, Abdelkrim Zeghileche, head of a web-based independent radio station, Radio-Sarbacane, had been sentenced to prison for insulting the president.

The main charges against him were "endangering national unity" and “insulting the head of the state” in a Facebook post, where he called for creating a new political party.

Each year, the government celebrates National Press Day, which was set by Bouteflika.

During the celebration, the “President of the Republic's Award for Professional Journalist" is given for the best journalistic work based on the topics set by the Ministry of Information.

Independent media outlets are known to boycott the event, as opposed to state media that participates heavily every year.



New Reports Reveal Details of Hassan Nasrallah’s Assassination

People gather at a site damaged by Israeli airstrike that killed Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during a commemoration ceremony in Beirut southern suburbs, Lebanon November 30, 2024. Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo 
People gather at a site damaged by Israeli airstrike that killed Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during a commemoration ceremony in Beirut southern suburbs, Lebanon November 30, 2024. Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo 
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New Reports Reveal Details of Hassan Nasrallah’s Assassination

People gather at a site damaged by Israeli airstrike that killed Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during a commemoration ceremony in Beirut southern suburbs, Lebanon November 30, 2024. Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo 
People gather at a site damaged by Israeli airstrike that killed Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah during a commemoration ceremony in Beirut southern suburbs, Lebanon November 30, 2024. Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani/File Photo 

Several Israeli reports revealed last week new information about the assassination of former Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah, saying the Joe Biden administration was reportedly furious about the operation.

The US did not try to stop the strike, but said the Israeli operation made them “look like fools,” a report by Israel’s Channel 13 said.

It showed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hesitated for a long time before he gave the order to execute the operation. Nasrallah was killed shortly after the Israeli PM gave a speech at the United Nations General Assembly.

On Sunday night, former Israeli Ambassador to the US, Mike Herzog, told Channel 13 that he attempted to provide advance warning of the strike.

Herzog said that it was agreed that Israel would update the Americans before the strike on Nasrallah’s compound, at the level of [then-National Security Advisor] Jake Sullivan.

In the interview, the former ambassador said, “We tried setting up a phone call with Jake Sullivan and he didn’t get back to us. He was angry because he thought we had deceived them, and we let them make public the initiative for a ceasefire and make them look foolish, while we are planning to eliminate Nasrallah.”

The US official who was informed about the Israeli operation is then-Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who had received a phone call from then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Asked how Austin responded during the call, when Gallant informed him that the strike was about to occur, former US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro made a diplomatic statement, saying, “I’ll allow others to characterize that call.”

During his interview with Channel 13, Gallant said, “I updated Austin 15 minutes before the operation. I told him, ‘We’re about to eliminate Nasrallah’. He asked me, ‘When?’ I told him, ‘15 minutes’. He really did not like this. He told me, ‘This could lead to a regional war’. I told him, ‘With all due respect, this man murdered thousands of Israelis and hundreds of Americans. I suggest you carefully consider your response.”

Gallant continued, “So he (Austin) asks me, ‘Are you convinced he’s there?’ I told him, ‘There is a very high probability.’”

At the end of September 2024, Israel was informed about Nasrallah’s plans to attend a high-level meeting in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

The French newspaper Le Parisien, citing a Lebanese security source, revealed that an Iranian spy provided Israel with information regarding the arrival of Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs.

The report noted that Nasrallah arrived in the exact vehicle as Abbas Nilforoushan, the Deputy Commander of Iran's Quds Force in Lebanon.

According to Le Parisien, the informant alerted Israel about Nasrallah’s planned arrival at the headquarters on Friday afternoon, just four hours before the strike.

But Israel’s Kan 11 channel said Israel received the information days before the strike.

Nasrallah, who had led Iran-backed Hezbollah for 32 years, was killed on September 27, 2024 when a series of Israeli airstrikes flattened several buildings in Beirut’s southern suburbs.