ALGIERS: An Algerian court on Wednesday handed heavy prison sentences to several former allies of ousted president Abdelaziz Bouteflika for corruption, a defence lawyer said.
Prominent tycoon Ali Haddad was handed an 18-year jail term while former prime ministers Ahmed Ouyahia and Abdelmalek Sellal, already behind bars over other graft cases, were sentenced to 12 years each.
Eight other former ministers were handed sentences of between two and 20 years.
Haddad's brothers -- Omar, Meziane, Sofiane and Mohamed -- were condemned to four years in prison, while the court ordered the seizure of family assets.
A lawyer for Haddad, the founder and CEO of construction firm ETRHB and former head of Algeria's main employers' organisation, slammed the verdict as "obviously political" and said the businessman would appeal.
"The defendants were members of the old regime. They are paying the price of the defeated," Khaled Bourayou added.
Bouteflika, who was Algeria's longest-serving president, was forced to resign in April last year amid enormous street protests against his decision to seek a fifth term in office despite his ill health.
While some have welcomed the trials of figures in his entourage, including his powerful brother Said and two former intelligence chiefs, many fear that they amount to little more than a power struggle between regime "clans".
Ex-Bouteflika allies handed heavy jail terms in Algeria graft trial
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Ex-Bouteflika allies handed heavy jail terms in Algeria graft trial
- Heavy prison sentences were handed to several former allies of Bouteflika
Palestinian man dies after being shot by Israeli forces
- Baraa Bilal Issa Qablan, 21, was traveling in vehicle near city of Qalqilya
LONDON: A Palestinian man died on Monday after being shot by Israeli forces during an incident on Sunday close to the occupied West Bank city of Qalqilya.
Baraa Bilal Issa Qablan, 21, was injured when Israeli forces at the northern entrance to the town of Azzun opened fire on a vehicle traveling along the Qalqilya-Nablus road.
Momen Nidal Abu Riyash, 19, a resident of Qalqilya, was killed in the incident and a third man, identified as Muhammad Saeed Taha Hussein, was taken into custody.
Qablan was injured and detained by Israeli forces, the Wafa news agency reported. The Palestinian Authority’s General Authority for Civil Affairs said on Monday that he later succumbed to his injuries.
More than 1,000 Palestinians, including militants, have been killed in the West Bank by Israeli forces or settlers since the start of the Gaza war in late 2023, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
During the same period, 43 Israelis, including soldiers, have been killed in Palestinian attacks in the West Bank, according to official Israeli figures.
