Algeria’s prosecutors freed six senior generals detained two weeks ago over charges of corruption and wrongdoing. The six are only a few of a large sweep, by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, that sacked dozens of officials.
The former commander of the National Gendarmerie, Maj. Gen. Manad Nuba, former commander of the 1st Military Region Major General Habib Shantouf, former commander of the second district Major Saeed Bay, former commander of the Fourth Military Region Major General Abdul Razzaq Sharif, and the Director of Finance of the Ministry of Defense Major, General Bujmaa Budwar, have walked out of military detention, a judiciary source told Asharq Al Awsat.
A martial law amendment allows military suspects to undergo litigation “on two phases,” just similar to civil courts, the source added.
In another scope, thousands of educational institutions in Algeria received “strict” instructions from Education Minister Nouria Benghabrit-Remaoun forbidding female educators and state employees from wearing the niqab to their respective workplaces.
This comes 15 days after the Ministry of the Interior ordered a niqab ban to be implemented by all civil servants.
Education sector officials and employees are obliged to follow instructions issued on the civil servant workplace dress code, an official statement said without directly noting that niqabs aren’t allowed anymore.
Benghabrit-Remaoun stressed that she is keen on implementing rules and requirements needed to ensure security in the workplace, which call for the swift identification of public servants.
No official statistics exist for the number of women wearing the niqab in the education sector, but it goes without saying only a few female civil servants in Algeria wear the religious head and face cover. Religious headdresses and niqabs are more popular in local areas known for their conservative character.
