Algeria’s Largest Opposition Party Runs for Early Parliamentary Elections

An electoral commission worker gives out a ballot paper to a voter in the presidential elections at a polling station in Algiers (AFP)
An electoral commission worker gives out a ballot paper to a voter in the presidential elections at a polling station in Algiers (AFP)
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Algeria’s Largest Opposition Party Runs for Early Parliamentary Elections

An electoral commission worker gives out a ballot paper to a voter in the presidential elections at a polling station in Algiers (AFP)
An electoral commission worker gives out a ballot paper to a voter in the presidential elections at a polling station in Algiers (AFP)

The largest Islamic opposition party in Algeria will be running for the early parliamentary elections, the date of which is yet to be announced.

Head of the Islamist Movement of Society for Peace, Abdul Razzaq Muqri, accused the extremist secular current of leading a conspiracy plan, saying it does not want elections because it has no chances to win.

Muqri criticized the secular parties in a press conference in Algiers without mentioning them, stating that the parties in question want to impose a transitional stage because they have influence within state institutions and foreign media.

Observers believe he was referring to the Labor Party and the Rally for Culture and Democracy after they expressed reservations about the meetings between Muqri, parties' leaders, and the president which resulted in the dissolution of the parliament and preparations for early legislative elections.

The parties believe the elections that brought Tebboune as president are “not legitimate” and further deepened the "legitimacy crisis".

They also believe that a two-year transitional phase can solve the ruling crisis, given that it is led by a group of figures known for their integrity. The figures will be tasked with organizing the presidential elections which will lead to a national unity government, provided that the army is not involved.

The authority rejected this proposition, indicating that it serves foreign agendas. It also accuses national parties of seeking to put Algeria on the path of chaos, as the case in Syria and Libya.



Israeli Strikes Kill 14 People in Gaza, Mediators Strive for a Truce Deal

 Palestinians search for casualties at the site of an Israeli strike on a house, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, January 5, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians search for casualties at the site of an Israeli strike on a house, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, January 5, 2025. (Reuters)
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Israeli Strikes Kill 14 People in Gaza, Mediators Strive for a Truce Deal

 Palestinians search for casualties at the site of an Israeli strike on a house, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, January 5, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians search for casualties at the site of an Israeli strike on a house, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Gaza City, January 5, 2025. (Reuters)

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 14 Palestinians in three separate attacks in the Gaza Strip on Sunday, taking the weekend death toll to 102, Palestinian medics said, as US and Arab mediators stepped up efforts to conclude a ceasefire deal.

Health officials said an Israeli airstrike killed five people in a house in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, while another airstrike killed four others in Jabalia in the northern edge of the enclave, where Israeli forces have been operating for three months.

Later on Sunday, an Israeli airstrike hit a police station in Khan Younis in southern Gaza, killing five people, medics said. It wasn't immediately clear if all the dead were policemen.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on Sunday's strikes.

Earlier on Sunday, the health ministry of Hamas-run Gaza said Israeli strikes across the territory had killed at least 88 Palestinians and wounded more than 200 others in the past 24 hours.

In Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, relatives and neighbors rushed to the Zuhd family's house, which was struck by an Israeli airstrike late on Saturday, killing seven people, medics said. The search continued on Sunday morning for four others believed to be trapped under the rubble.

A hand belonging to one of the dead could be seen amongst the ruins, with the rest of his body buried under collapsed masonry. Three men removed dirt with their bare hands to retrieve bodies and search for possible survivors.

"Three young men, the son’s wife, and three children are still here. We retrieved this cousin of mine. Another cousin has been martyred and is now in the hospital. Approximately 11 people have been martyred here," Ammar Zuhd, a relative, told Reuters.

ISRAEL SAYS DOZENS OF HAMAS MILITANTS KILLED

The Israeli military said in a statement on Sunday that its forces had attacked more than 100 targets across Gaza over the weekend, killing dozens of Hamas fighters. It said it had also destroyed rocket launching sites that had been used to wage rocket attacks on Israel in recent days.

A renewed push is underway to reach a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, and return Israeli hostages who were taken to Gaza, before US President-elect Donald Trump takes office on Jan. 20.

Israeli negotiators were dispatched on Friday to resume talks in Doha brokered by Qatari and Egyptian mediators, while US President Joe Biden's administration, which is helping to mediate, urged Hamas to agree to a deal.

Hamas said it was committed to reaching an agreement as soon as possible, but it was unclear how close the two sides were.

Israel launched its assault on Gaza in response to an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas fighters on communities in southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's military campaign, with the stated goal of eradicating Hamas, has leveled swathes of the enclave, driving most people from their homes, and has killed 45,805 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry.