ALGIERS: Algerian Finance Minister Aimene Benabderrahmane was named prime minister Wednesday, the presidency said, following legislative elections earlier this month and as the country seeks to curb a deep socio-economic crisis.
“Aimene Benabderrahmane has been appointed prime minister and charged with carrying on consultations with political parties and civil society to form a government as soon as possible,” the presidency said in a statement.
Benabderrahmane, 60, replaces Abdelaziz Djerad, who had held the post since late 2019 and presented his government’s resignation last week, following early parliamentary elections held on June 12.
Djerad’s government had been unable to redress the country’s economic crisis.
Africa’s fourth-largest economy is heavily dependent on oil revenues, which have slumped in the face of the global economic slowdown.
Unemployment stands at more than 12 percent, according to World Bank figures.
President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, who had previously expressed dissatisfaction with Djerad and his cabinet, thanked him for leading the government “during difficult conditions,” particularly the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Also Wednesday, the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), which came third in the vote with 65 seats in the 407-seat legislature, said it would not be part of a new government.
The country’s incumbent National Liberation Front (FLN) won the most seats in the June 12 vote that saw just 23 percent voter participation.
The low national turnout has been seen as a sign of Algerians’ disillusionment with and defiance of a political class deemed to have lost much of its credibility.
Algeria’s long-running “Hirak” pro-democracy protest movement boycotted the polls.
Ahead of the official results, the MSP had said its candidates were in the lead in most regions and hinted it could be part of the government.
But following consultations with President Tebboune, the party said it decided to step back.
“What was proposed does not allow us to influence political and economic developments,” MSP chief Abderazzak Makri told a news conference in Algiers.
He said he had been asked to propose a list of 27 names from which the executive would select four or five ministers.
“It’s not up to us to choose our ministers (in the government) and that is unacceptable,” he said.
“We want to be in power and not its facade,” Makri said.
The MSP had been part of successive Algerian governments from 1996 to 2011.
Algeria finance minister Benabderrahmane named new PM
https://arab.news/nnx2p
Algeria finance minister Benabderrahmane named new PM
- Benabderrahmane, 60, replaces Abdelaziz Djerad, who had held the post since late 2019
- Djerad’s government had been unable to redress the country’s economic crisis
Libya demands improvements after leaked photos show tiny cell of Muammar Qaddafi’s son in Beirut
- Hannibal Qaddafi has been held in Lebanon since 2015 after he was kidnapped from neighboring Syria
- Qaddafi was abducted by Lebanese militants demanding information about the fate of prominent Lebanese Shiite cleric Moussa Al-Sadr
The photos showed a room without natural light packed with Hannibal Qaddafi’s belongings, a bed and a tiny toilet. “I live in misery,” local Al-Jadeed TV quoted the detainee as saying in a Saturday evening broadcast, adding that he is a political prisoner in a case he has no information about.
Two Lebanese judicial officials confirmed to The Associated Press on Monday that the photographs aired by Al-Jadeed are of Qaddafi and the cell where he has been held for years at police headquarters in Beirut. Qaddafi appeared healthy, with a light beard and glasses.
A person who is usually in contact with Qaddafi, a Libyan citizen, said the photos were taken in recent days. All spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to media outlets.
Qaddafi has been held in Lebanon since 2015 after he was kidnapped from neighboring Syria, where he had been living as a political refugee. He was abducted by Lebanese militants demanding information about the fate of prominent Lebanese Shiite cleric Moussa Al-Sadr, who went missing during a trip to Libya in 1978.
The fate of Al-Sadr has been a sore point in Lebanon. His family believes he may still be alive in a Libyan prison, though most Lebanese presume Al-Sadr, who would be 95 now, is dead.
A Libyan delegation visited Beirut in January to reopen talks with Lebanese officials on the fate of Al-Sadr and the release of Qaddafi. The talks were aimed at reactivating a dormant agreement between Lebanon and Libya, struck in 2014, for cooperation in the probe of Al-Sadr. The delegation did not return to Beirut as planned.
The leaks by Al-Jadeed came after reports that Qaddafi was receiving special treatment at police headquarters and that he had cosmetic surgeries including hair transplants and teeth improvements. Al-Jadeed quoted him as saying: “Let them take my hair and teeth and give me my freedom.”
Qaddafi went on a hunger strike in June last year and was taken to a hospital after his health deteriorated.
Libya’s Justice Ministry in a statement Sunday said Qaddafi is being deprived of his rights guaranteed by law. It called on Lebanese authorities to improve his living conditions to one that “preserves his dignity,” adding that Lebanese authorities should formally inform the ministry of the improvements. It also said Qaddafi deserves to be released.
After he was kidnapped in 2015, Lebanese authorities freed him but then detained him, accusing him of concealing information about Al-Sadr’s disappearance.
Al-Sadr was the founder of the Amal group, a Shiite militia that fought in Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war and later became a political party that is currently led by the country’s Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
Many of Al-Sadr’s followers are convinced that Muammar Qaddafi ordered Al-Sadr killed in a dispute over Libyan payments to Lebanese militias. Libya has maintained that the cleric, along with two traveling companions, left Tripoli in 1978 on a flight to Rome.
Human Rights Watch issued a statement in January calling for Qaddafi’s release. The rights group noted that Qaddafi was only 2 years old at the time of Al-Sadr’s disappearance and held no senior position in Libya as an adult.
French FM in Beirut submits new peace proposal
- ‘We are working to avoid Lebanon being ravaged by a regional war,’ says Stephane Sejourne
BEIRUT: The French foreign minister has submitted a new peace proposal in Beirut aimed at ending months of violence between Hezbollah and Israel.
Stephane Sejourne met officials in Beirut on Sunday, calling on the warring parties to abide by UN Resolution 1701.
After the talks, he said: “War exists even if not explicitly named. Civilians are paying the price, and no one is interested in the continuing escalation. This is the message I conveyed here, and this is the message I will convey on Tuesday to Israel.”
The minister discussed an amendment to a proposal Paris had presented to Lebanon for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict.
UN Resolution 1701, which brought an end to the brutal Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006, is widely viewed as the most suitable framework for ending the latest conflict.
However, Hezbollah has persisted with linking its strikes on Israel to events in the Gaza Strip, while the Lebanese state has reminded Israel of its obligation to Resolution 1701 following repeated violations.
On Monday, reports said that a French technical team would bring the revised French initiative to Lebanese authorities within 48 hours. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri was notified by Sejourne about the update.
The proposal will be delivered to Lebanon through diplomatic channels, said the French minister, who left Lebanon on Sunday night following his visit.
The revised version of the French initiative contains several pillars, including the cessation of hostilities between Hezbollah and the Israeli army under UN Resolution 1701.
It also calls for the safe return of Israelis to northern settlements and Lebanese citizens to border towns in the south.
Additionally, the initiative calls for deploying more Lebanese military forces across border areas and strengthening the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL.
The earlier version of the French peace plan, sent to Lebanon in mid-March, called for Hezbollah and its allies to retreat 10-12 km from the border. It also urged Israel to avoid “air violations.”
While in Beirut, Sejourne advised Berri to prioritize the election of a president before finalizing negotiations on the situation in the south.
Establishing a governing authority and ensuring presidential involvement in negotiations with Israel was “important,” he said.
Berri presented Sejourne with a map from the Scientific Research Institute that detailed the extensive damage and losses caused by Israeli military operations in southern Lebanon.
The map said that Israeli phosphorus bombings had affected “an area of 10 million sq meters.”
In addition, since the low-level conflict began last October, 1,000 housing units have been destroyed and thousands partially damaged.
Israeli operations have caused “significant harm to the environment and agriculture,” an infographic said.
After his talks in Lebanon, the French foreign minister said: “The crisis has lasted a long time. We are working to avoid Lebanon being ravaged by a regional war.
“We call on all parties to exercise restraint, and we reject the worst scenario in Lebanon, which is war.”
The UNIFIL operational region in Lebanon saw no activity on Sunday morning, after months of hostilies between Hezbollah and Israel in the area.
It coincided with Sejourne’s visit to UNIFIL headquarters in Naqoura, where he was briefed on the border situation by commander Gen. Aroldo Lazaro.
Sejourne also inspected the work of French peacekeepers serving with UNIFIL.
Meanwhile, Israeli military drones launched two missiles toward Aita Al-Shaab on Monday.
Other Israeli military drones raided Khiam, following a night of heavy shelling on Lebanese border villages, including Aita Al-Shaab, Kfarkila, Tayr Harfa, Naqoura and Jabal Blat.
Hezbollah said it targeted “a gathering of Israeli soldiers in the vicinity of the Ruwaizat Al-Alam site with artillery shells.”
Residents in southern Lebanon have claimed that the Israeli army is deploying “a new type of heavy artillery.”
One resident told Arab News: “The whole region shakes and the ground trembles under our feet from the border until Nabatieh as if they were using seismic, thermobaric missiles.”
The morning Israeli strikes were a response to the interception of “over 30 missiles launched from southern Lebanon toward the Galilee panhandle and the upper Galilee,” according to Israeli media.
The Al-Qassam Brigades — the military wing of Hamas — said in a statement that its Lebanon branch had targeted the headquarters of Israel’s 769th Eastern Brigade.
The group launched a salvo of rockets from southern Lebanon, describing the attack as a response to “Israel’s massacres in Gaza and the West Bank.”
Suspected Houthi missiles hit commercial ship in Red Sea
- US military destroys new barrage of militia drones
- CENTCOM says actions taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer
AL-MUKALLA: Missiles thought to have been fired by Houthi forces in Yemen targeted a commercial ship in the Red Sea on Monday as the US military destroyed a new barrage of Houthi drones.
UK Maritime Trade Operations said that it received an alarm about an explosion in the proximity of a commercial ship 87 km northwest of Yemen’s western town of Al-Mokha, but that the ship and the crew were safe.
“Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to (us),” UKMTO said on X.
Ambrey, a UK maritime security service, identified the target ship as a Malta-flagged cargo vessel that was hit by three missiles while travelling from Djibouti to the Gulf.
The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for Monday’s strike, although they often only take credit several hours, sometimes even days, after an attack.
Since November, the Iran-backed Houthis have seized one commercial ship, sunk another, and launched hundreds of drones, ballistic missiles, and remotely operated and explosives-laden boats at commercial and navy vessels in the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea, and the Bab Al-Mandab Strait.
The Yemeni militia claims that the assaults are aimed only against Israel-bound and Israel-linked ships to push Israel to allow humanitarian supplies into the Gaza Strip.
In response to the Houthi’s ship campaign, the US formed a coalition of marine forces to protect critical maritime channels off Yemen and began strikes on Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.
The US Central Command said that its forces on Sunday intercepted five drones launched by the Houthis over the Red Sea that were aimed at the US, its allies, and international commercial and naval ships.
“These actions are taken to protect freedom of navigation and make international waters safer and more secure for US coalition and merchant vessels,” CENTCOM said on X on Monday morning.
At the same time, the Houthi-run Saba news agency reported that the group’s armed forces carried out more than 83 strikes on 103 ships affiliated with Israel and its allies, as well as shooting down three US military MQ-9 Reaper drones between November 19, 2023, and April 26, 2024.
In a 39-page report on campaign against shipping in the Red Sea, the Houthis claimed that their strikes killed two American marines, two Filipinos, and one Vietnamese sailor while injuring four marines from the US-led marine task force.
During the campaign, the Houthis captured one ship, set fire to four, sunk two others, and damaged scores more, according to the report.
Despite a recent escalation in the number of strikes, since late last month the Houthis have drastically curtailed missile and drone attacks on ships.
The decrease in assaults has caused US military generals and analysts to surmise that the Houthis may have run out of weaponry and that the US-led air campaign reduced their military capabilities.
Jordan welcomes UK delegation to introduce weather forecasting project
- Project aims to provide meteorological data and early warnings to refugee-hosting communities
AMMAN: Jordanian Transport Minister Wesam Altahtamouni welcomed a delegation from the British Embassy in Amman and the British Meteorological Office on Monday.
The meeting came as part of the UK Foreign Ministry’s efforts to implement the Jahez project, which aims to provide meteorological data and early warnings to refugee-hosting communities, Jordan News Agency reported.
Jahez, which will span three to five years, aims to develop proactive plans and long-term strategies, enhance monitoring and forecasting systems, and implement resilience-building measures to mitigate the effects of climate change.
The collaboration will involve Jordan’s ministries of transport, environment, planning, water and irrigation, as well as relevant municipalities.
Helen Ticehurst from the British Meteorological Office explained the British Meteorological Office’s operations and the objectives of Jahez.
The project also focuses on climate finance for countries hosting refugees.
Altahtamouni praised the British delegation for its willingness to provide technical assistance, leveraging the expertise of the British Meteorological Office in proactive weather forecasting and climate change adaptation.
Djibouti FM to stand at African Union Commission elections
- Mahamoud Ali Youssouf calls for resolution of conflicts in Sudan, Gulf of Aden and Gaza
- Mahamoud Ali Youssouf: The only thing we know for sure today is that the next president will come from an East African country
RIYADH: Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, the minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation of the Republic of Djibouti, intends to stand for election to the African Union Commission.
The commission is based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Its main functions are to represent the AU and defend its interests under the authority and mandate of the assembly and executive council.
The minister said that the main objectives of the commission are to promote integration, economic and social development, peace, security and human rights on the continent. It also aims to strengthen continental and international cooperation.
Tradition dictates that the president of the commission should be elected for a renewable four-year term, and should obviously be African, especially as the next session will be chaired by the East African Community, which includes Djibouti among its members.
The diplomat believes that winning these elections will contribute greatly to strengthening integration between the countries of the continent, as well as to reinforcing African relations with various other geographical groups, given the international and regional acceptance and respect enjoyed by Djibouti thanks to its balanced foreign policy.
Youssouf said he had been encouraged to stand as a candidate in the forthcoming elections by the respect and diplomatic appreciation that Djibouti possesses, highlighting also his long personal experience in the diplomatic field as an ambassador and then as minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation since 2005, and his in-depth knowledge of the work of the AU.
He said that a good knowledge of continental affairs is essential to occupy such an important position, adding that such an organization needs experienced leaders and diplomats to effectively promote continental and international cooperation given the continent’s current circumstances.
“The only thing we know for sure today is that the next president will come from an East African country. It will then be up to the member states to decide on the day of the vote,” he said.
Youssouf said that if elected, he will focus, in the interests of the African people, on three important areas: strengthening cooperation and economic integration between the countries of the continent; developing continental and international cooperation; and cooperation with international and regional organizations such as the UN, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League.
In early January, the Somaliland region signed an agreement with Ethiopia granting it a maritime opening to the Gulf of Aden. This treaty led to a political crisis between Ethiopia and neighboring Somalia, which promptly cancelled the memorandum, calling it illegal.
Youssouf said Djibouti currently chairs the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, and that Somalia and Ethiopia are members, along with other countries in the region, which gives it an additional responsibility in mediating between the two. He said that settlement efforts are continuing with Djibouti and Kenya mediating, with hopes that the two parties will reach an agreement soon.
He added that Djibouti, through its current presidency of IGAD, is very interested in seeing diplomatic relations between Somalia and Ethiopia return to what they were before the signing of the MoU.
Youssouf maintains that other crises in the world have distracted attention from Africa’s bloodiest conflict in Sudan, calling it the most forgotten crisis, especially when it comes to refugees and population displacement. He said that over 6.5 million Sudanese have been forced to leave their homes, with over a third of them displaced outside the country, and that the proliferation of ethnically-based militias in the current conflict is equally alarming.
As Sudan is a founding member of IGAD, he said Djibouti is making intense and continuous efforts in coordination with the other member states and the international community, notably the US and Saudi Arabia, to find a solution to the ongoing conflict in this brotherly country.
He also revealed that his country had already received representatives of the parties responsible for the crisis in Sudan to listen to their points of view and their vision for a solution. It should be noted that all have affirmed their desire to put an end to the war, and hope that these efforts will lead to a permanent and unconditional ceasefire, Youssouf said.
Recently, attacks on ships in the Red Sea have intensified, targeting vessels and disrupting this most important maritime passage. Youssouf said Djibouti is following these developments with great concern, specifying that the Bab Al-Mandeb Strait, overlooked by Djibouti, is considered an international passage of extreme importance from a political and economic point of view.
He confirmed that any breach of security in this area has global repercussions, given its role as a vital artery for international trade, and called for solutions to be found to the various crises in the region, so that everyone can enjoy peace and security.
With regard to the war on Gaza, Youssouf urged the international community to assume its responsibilities and put an end to the Israeli campaign which has cost the lives of over 34,000 people, as well as the resulting displacement and famine threatening the lives of millions of children.
