Algerian president seeks to restore death penalty for arsonists — Euronews
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune seeks to restore the death penalty for arsonists after deadly forest fires in the country’s northeast killed 12 people. Euronews reports.
Amendments to the code
Tebboune declared three days of nationwide mourning after the fires and called the deaths a “great tragedy.” The president also instructed that an amendment to the Criminal Code be submitted by September 15.
Algeria has had a moratorium on the death penalty since 1993. The president’s initiative came amid fires that swept through several provinces in the country’s northeast.
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Deaths and injured people
Interior Minister Said Sayoud said that five people died in Jijel Province, four in Béjaïa, and another three in Tizi Ouzou. According to him, 54 people with burns are in hospitals, six of whom are in critical condition.
Algeria’s Civil Protection service reported in the morning that 46 of the 193 fires recorded over the previous 24 hours remained active. The National Gendarmerie announced the closure of three major highways connecting the country’s eastern regions due to fires near Béjaïa, Jijel and Sétif.
Forest fires regularly occur in northern Algeria during the summer, while more frequent droughts and intense heat increase their intensity. In July 2023, fires near Béjaïa destroyed hundreds of homes, engulfed thousands of hectares of forests and agricultural land, and killed more than 30 people.
