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Algerian justice has refused to temporarily release a veteran of the independence war deemed arrested for allegedly insulting the army, his lawyers said.
Lakhdar Bouregaa, 86, was arrested in late June for "insulting an organ of the state" and "for taking part in a project to demoralize the army in order to undermine the defense of the state." nation".
His supporters have criticized the head of the army, Ahmed Gaid Saleh, a de facto strong man in Algeria since the fall of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in power since April.
"The investigating judge … rejected the request for provisional release presented by the group of lawyers for change and dignity on behalf of Lakhdar Bouregaa," said Wednesday the group of lawyers on Facebook.
The request for release of the octogenarian was based on "health reasons, supported by a medical record," said the lawyers.
The charges – which could lead to a prison term of up to 10 years in prison – have caused great indignation in Algeria.
Bouregaa was a commander of the National Liberation Army (NLA) – who fought against French colonial rule – and a 1963 founder of the Front for Socialist Forces, one of the oldest parties in the world. Algerian opposition.
Prior to his arrest, he had participated in protests that shook Algeria since February – first against Bouteflika, then against the establishment, after the president was forced to resign.
Bouregaa is one of the many alleged "prisoners of conscience" that the protest movement is demanding to be released.
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