In the aftermath of wildfires that consumed villages and claimed at least twelve lives in northeastern Algeria, President Tebboune has moved to make arson a capital offense — a response that carries the weight of grief but also the shadow of political utility. Algeria has not executed anyone in over thirty years, and this potential rupture with that restraint arrives alongside arrests that blend criminal and subversive charges in ways that trouble human rights observers. Amnesty International warns that the fires, as in 2021, risk becoming not a catalyst for justice but a pretext for suppressi
Algeria urged to abandon death penalty expansion after wildfires
At least 12 people killed and 54 injured in wildfires that destroyed entire villages across northeastern Algeria.