Algerian President Bouteflika targeted by the September 6 terror attack, what if?
By Olivier Guitta
After the terror bombing that occurred in Batna on September 6 15 minutes before president Bouteflika's appearance, the question of what if is at the middle of the Algerian political scene. Succession has not really been planned and a real chaos would have certainly followed the assassination of Bouteflika.
Other forces are working to unseat the current president and his regime.
From The Croissant comes this very interesting story about Algerian dissidents planning to overthrow President Bouteflika.
Here is an excerpt:
The political movement Rachad, founded by Algerian refugees living in Switzerland, the UK and Germany, was launched on April 18 from London.
This little group wants to overthrow president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and his regime.
3 out of the 5 founding members live in Switzerland:
- Abbas Aroua teaches at the University of Medicine of Lausanne
- Mourad Dhina is an ex-employee of the CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) and of the Zurich Federal Polytechnique School
- Rachid Mesli works for the Arab Human Rights organization Al Karama in Geneva
Mourad Dhina is one of the key figures of the Algerian fundamentalists. After the dissolution of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) [the main Algerian Islamist party] in 1992, he fled to Saint Genis Pouilly [in France nearby the Swiss border];in 1994 he was suspected of weapons trafficking by French authorities, he then decided to flee to Switzerland where his asylum requests were denied twice. Between 2002 and 2004, he nonetheless was in charge of the FIS executive office abroad. Since 1995 he has been tolerated on Swiss soil thanks to a never-ending temporary authorization. Since Algerian authorities revoked his passport he, along with his wife and 6 children (5 of which were born in Switzerland), cannot travel outside Switzerland.
Dhina easily admits that he has “almost constant” contacts with:
Abbas Madani, the historical FIS leader and Madani’s right hand Ali Belhadj (both were jailed in Algeria for 12 years, both always refused to condemn the terrorist acts of the GSPC (Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat) now called Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb [AQIM])
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