Algeria's Largest Islamic Party Demands Release of All Prisoners of Conscience

 A file photo shows demonstrators wearing national flags walk past a street vendor during a protest demanding a change of the power structure in Algiers, Algeria January 24, 2020. (Reuters)
A file photo shows demonstrators wearing national flags walk past a street vendor during a protest demanding a change of the power structure in Algiers, Algeria January 24, 2020. (Reuters)
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Algeria's Largest Islamic Party Demands Release of All Prisoners of Conscience

 A file photo shows demonstrators wearing national flags walk past a street vendor during a protest demanding a change of the power structure in Algiers, Algeria January 24, 2020. (Reuters)
A file photo shows demonstrators wearing national flags walk past a street vendor during a protest demanding a change of the power structure in Algiers, Algeria January 24, 2020. (Reuters)

The Algerian Movement of Society for Peace, the largest Islamic party in the country, demanded on Thursday the release of all prisoners of conscience with no exceptions.

The Movement released a statement after revealing that it is aware of recent developments that occurred regarding several cases that lead to the release of former officials, and therefore, it urged the release of all prisoners of conscience.

The Movement said that ensuring the future of Algeria starts from the realization of the genuine will of its people without any form of guardianship. It further underscored the importance of showing confidence in the Algerians’ choices.

This came as a sentence was issued in the case of Algerian blogger Walid Kashida who was sentenced to three years in prison.

Kashida, who is a supporter of the Hirak, is accused of publishing comics on the Internet ridiculing Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and religion, according to an NGO and a lawyer.

The verdict frustrated rights activities and politicians who were expecting his release.

The Public Prosecutor in Setif had requested a five-year imprisonment sentence against Kachida, 25, on charges of insulting "a statutory body, the president and religion."

Said Salhi, vice president of the Algerian League for the Defense of Human Rights (LADDH), said that the authority insists on being despotic.

There are more than 90 individuals in Algerian prisons detained over their ties with the Hirak or freedom of opinion issues. The prosecutions, in the majority, are based on Facebook posts that criticize the authority, Salhi noted.



Lebanese Air Transport Union Denies Evacuation Rumors at Beirut Airport

Smoke rises in Beirut's southern suburbs after a strike, as a plane takes off from Rafik Hariri International Airport, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon, October 8, 2024. (Reuters)
Smoke rises in Beirut's southern suburbs after a strike, as a plane takes off from Rafik Hariri International Airport, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon, October 8, 2024. (Reuters)
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Lebanese Air Transport Union Denies Evacuation Rumors at Beirut Airport

Smoke rises in Beirut's southern suburbs after a strike, as a plane takes off from Rafik Hariri International Airport, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon, October 8, 2024. (Reuters)
Smoke rises in Beirut's southern suburbs after a strike, as a plane takes off from Rafik Hariri International Airport, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, as seen from Hadath, Lebanon, October 8, 2024. (Reuters)

The Lebanese Air Transport Union on Wednesday denied rumors that it issued an evacuation request of the Rafik Hariri International Airport in Beirut, confirming that airport operations continue without disruption.
The Union denied in a statement “rumors that quoted chairman of the board of directors of the Middle East Airlines as requesting technicians and engineers to evacuate the Rafik Hariri International Airport in Beirut and deport the planes.”
It said the rumors aim at spreading chaos at the airport and among the Lebanese. “We assure that the airport is operating normally", it stated.
Despite the ongoing Israeli hostilities in Lebanon and the mounting risks, Lebanon’s national carrier Middle East Airlines (MEA) continues to operate flights to and from Rafik Hariri International Airport.

Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel the day after Hamas’ surprise attack into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 ignited the war in Gaza. Hezbollah and Hamas are both allied with Iran.
For nearly a year, the conflict was mostly contained to the areas along the border between Israel and Lebanon. The conflict dramatically escalated on Sept. 23 with intense Israeli airstrikes on south and east Lebanon as well as Beirut’s southern suburbs, leaving hundreds dead and leading to the displacement of nearly 1.2 million people.