According to Franciscogardening, Algeria is a country in northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea and bordering Tunisia, Libya, Niger, Mali, Mauritania, Western Sahara and Morocco.
Algiers is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city is located in a bay by the Mediterranean. The city has 3 million. residents, which corresponds to 10% of the country’s population. Algiers became the capital of Algeria after the country’s independence in 1962.
Some of Algeria’s environmental problems are soil erosion, discharges of unclean sewage, water pollution from oil refineries and a lack of fresh water. Algeria has signed but not ratified the UN Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. All electricity is produced using fossil fuels.
The country has the world’s fifth largest natural gas reserves, and is the world’s second largest natural gas exporter. In terms of oil, the country has the world’s 14th largest reserves. To reduce dependence on oil as a source of food, the government is trying to spread investment to other industries, but it has ongoing problems with high unemployment and low living standards.
There are three factors in particular that made Algeria occupy a special place among developing countries for almost 30 years from 1960-90: the country’s liberation from colonialism, an anti-imperialist foreign policy and a large-scale development model that should lead to a socialist society. But the developments of recent years have postponed the dream indefinitely.
Algeria gained independence in 1962 by the Evian Treaty after the Algerian War.
More than 100,000 people have been killed since 1991, when the government canceled an election in which the Islamic Savior Front stood to win. However, the Salvation Front was dissolved the following year.
TIMELINE:
10,000 BCE – Algeria has been inhabited since the arrival of the Berbers. The origins of the Berbers are uncertain, but they most likely formed the dominant population group in northern Africa from around 1500 BC Only with the Arab immigration in the 12th century were the Berbers displaced to the mountain and desert areas.
1000 BCE – Carthaginians settled along the coast of the country.
200 BCE – The Roman Republic, the forerunner of the Roman Empire, conquered Algeria.
1235-1518 – The Zianids ruled the country during this period and had to resist Spanish invasions, which i.a. resulted in the creation of strongholds such as Oran, after Christian Spain in 1492 ended 7th century Muslim domination.
17th Century – Together with Tunis, Algeria became part of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century. Brothers Arroudj and Kheireddine threw the Spaniards off the coast and extended state domination over an extensive territory. The strength of the navy gave the country great respect, and the country’s independence was confirmed through several treaties: with the Netherlands in 1663, France in 1670, England in 1681 and the United States in 1815.
1840 – 115,000 French soldiers invade Algeria, starting a new war of conquest. Several failed revolt attempts were carried out against the French. In the southern part of the country, however, the nomadic tribes maintained their almost total independence and fought until well into the 20th century the presence of the French. (See Western Sahara). It was not until around 1870 that resistance in the northern part of the country was crushed.
1942 – November 10. Oran is a city in Algeria with approx. 700,000 residents (today). The city was under the Vichy government during World War II, but was conquered by the Allies during Operation Torch. (see Google Maps)
1945 – Nationalist resistance explodes as celebrations of victory over Nazism escalate into a popular uprising: According to the official French report, 45,000 Algerians and 108 Europeans are killed. To stem the development of the uprising, the French made a series of political concessions, allowing the nationalist movement to form political parties and participate in the elections held by the colonial authorities in 1948 and 51.
1954 – November 1. To preserve Algeria as French, the French destroyed 8,000 villages in the following years, killed 1 million Algerian civilians, carried out systematic torture, and sent more than 500,000 French soldiers to the country. (See Algerian War.) The right-wing French settlers in Algeria formed the dreaded Organization Armée Secrète (OAS), which mixed neo-fascism with the demands of the French settlers and resistance to the ever-increasing Algerian influence. On March 18, 1962, the then French President Charles de Gaulle finally signed the Evian Agreement, which included a ceasefire and a referendum on self-determination.
1958 – UFO MYTH. In the month of March, the legionary NG, in Bouahmama Indian the Algerian war, saw a huge round object that came descending and stopped when it was a 35-40 meters above the ground. It hovered silently and stood completely still in the air. He believed that the object was 350 meters wide. He felt that he was mentally affected by the object. Read the rest in ufoevidence (English).
1962 – Algeria is liberated from France and becomes independent.
1963 – Ahmed Ben Bella is elected president.
1965 – June 19. Col Houari Boumedienne overthrows President Ben Bella and promises to put an end to corruption. Dissatisfaction with the bourgeoisie and the army grew, and a group around Boumedienne took the lead in a bloodless coup. Ben Bella was arrested and placed in long-term solitary confinement. The coup was later called the “historic resurgence” of the revolution, while the Ben Bella period had led the revolution into a dead end. Boumedienne’s takeover, however, meant concessions to the bourgeoisie over the nationalization of private property – i.a. in that some nationalized property was given back to its previous owners. The army had supported the coup, and an alliance now emerged between the landowners, the army, and the state apparatus.
1976 – Boumedienne introduces a new constitution and a Legislative Assembly, The National People’s Assembly, based on socialism and the National Liberation Front (FLN) as the sole political party. Islam is being recognized as a state religion.
1976 – December. Boumedienne is elected president and is helping to launch a rapid industrialization program.
1978 – Boumedienne dies and is replaced by Col Chadli Bendjedid.
1986 – Rising inflation and unemployment. Violent declines in oil and gas prices are causing a wave of strikes and violent demonstrations.
1988 – In October, protests begin in several cities against the scarcity of water and basic goods. At the same time, the protests questioned the legitimacy of the FLN and the military. Militant fundamentalist Muslims were in this situation among the main agitation groups. Some mosques – especially in the popular districts – became the center of political demonstrations. Especially during the Friday prayer that was used to formulate political and social demands. Some of the most radical Islamist groups began sending volunteers to Afghanistan to fight jihad “holy war” against the Soviet-backed Kabul regime. The protests and agitation forced President Chadli Bendjedid to promise a new constitution, which in mid-1989 introduced multi-party rule and thus did away with the FLN’s 27-year one-party rule.
1989 – Algeria’s Legislative Assembly lifts the ban on new political parties and makes new electoral rules that allow opposition parties to run in future elections.
1989 – The Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) is formed. In total, more than 20 new lots are approved.
1991 – Government calls parliamentary elections in June and plans to change the electoral system. This is done i.a. harder to campaign in mosques. FIS responds and calls for general strike.
1991 – December. In the election, turnout reached 60% of the 13 million eligible voters. The result of the 1st round of elections was a major victory for FIS, which got 188 out of 430 seats in parliament against FFS’s 25 and FLN’s 15. The anti-fundamentalist sectors in the country were deeply concerned about FIS ‘victory in the first round. This was especially true of FFS and the country’s LO, UGTA. They staged a demonstration with 100,000 participants in the center of the capital Algiers. Women’s organizations, middle classes and intellectuals also took part.
1992 – January 4. President Chadli Benjedid resigned after fierce pressure from the military and FLN politicians. They feared a total FIS victory. Instead, a Supreme Security Council was formed consisting of 3 military personnel and the Prime Minister. Shortly afterwards, a Supreme Council of State headed by Mohamed Boudiaf, who had been the opposition leader within the FLN and in exile since 1964, was established. The council immediately initiated the arrest of FIS leaders and the election result was annulled.
1992 – In February, the Government put the whole country in a state of emergency for 1 year. The military opposed any possible division of power with the FIS. Gathering on the streets will be banned, violent clashes will break out on February 8 and 9 between FIS supporters and security forces. FIS is ordered dissolved.
1992 – March 25. FIS was banned.
1992 – In the first days of April, the government dissolves about 400 local councils, which have been led by members of the FIS since the June 1990 local elections. In late April, the Supreme Court upheld the illegalization of the FIS.
1992 – June 29. At a public event, Boudiaf was assassinated during a speech by one of his security guards, who had Islamist connections. The violence escalates and the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) turns out to be behind the operations. Budiaf was replaced by Ali Kafi and at the same time Prime Minister Ghozali resigned. The government’s policy towards the opposition was now further tightened.
1992 – September. The government, under the leadership of the new Prime Minister Belaid Abdelsalam, announced a series of “anti-terrorist measures” – including the extension of the death penalty to a wide range of new areas. Amnesty International estimates that some 2,000 people lost their lives during the first years of the Civil War.
1993 – February. The Council of State extended the state of emergency indefinitely, imposed curfews in Algiers and 5 provinces, and dissolved all the organizations affiliated with the illegal FIS.
1994 – Prime Minister Abdelsalam refused to carry out massive privatizations and was therefore removed from power. It paved the way in early 1994 for an agreement between the IMF and the new government led by Redha Malek. The increase in the external debt coincided with the increase in unemployment, which reached 22% of the working population. Malek was replaced by another advocate of economic liberalization, Mokdad Sifi, who was judged to be more open to dialogue with the Islamists. This was the beginning of a growing division in all the political sectors, and at the same time the Islamic guerrilla was split into the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) and the Armed Islamic Movement. Violence from both sides – both government and Islamists – continued throughout the year, without any of them being able to achieve a military victory. In one of their most spectacular actions, the Islamists succeeded in freeing 1,000 prisoners from the high-security prison Tazoult. The civil war continued through 1995, but despite some military superiority on the part of the government, it did not seem possible to crush the Islamic opposition.
1994 – Liamine Zeroual, a retired military colonel, is appointed Prime Minister.
1995 – Zeroual wins the presidential election by a comfortable majority.
1997 – January was particularly violent, and the GIA showed that the organization still had significant operational capacity. More than 200 people died in various attacks – over 100 were beheaded. It put the government on high alert.
1997 – In August, the newly released FIS leader, Abasi Madani, declares that his movement was willing to put an end to the violence through dialogue with the government. But the same month’s massacre of 300 people in a small village south of Algiers once again destroyed the possibility of dialogue. Those responsible for the massacre were judged to be Islamist partisans, but at the same time eyewitnesses could report that troops from the army could have prevented the massacre, but chose not to intervene.
1997 – Parliamentary elections are won by the newly formed Democratic National Rally, followed by the Moderate Islamic Party, Movement of Society for Peace.
1998 – President Zeroual announces early elections.
1998 – March. Amnesty International criticized government security forces and opposition groups for their responsibility for the killings and disappearances of hundreds of people. At the same time, the organization criticized the torture and ill-treatment of detainees as well as the violation of the maximum detention period.
1999 – In April, former Foreign Minister Abdelaziz Bouteflika is elected president after all opposition candidates withdraw with accusations of an unfair election. He called an immediate referendum on a law of reconciliation. The law received overwhelming support with 98.6% of the vote and was also supported by the FIS. The president also introduced a general amnesty for all those who laid down their arms and engaged in legal political activity.
1999 – In November, FIS ‘3rd most important leader, Abdelkader Hachani, is assassinated in the capital Algiers. The assassination is believed to have been committed by radical Islamic forces who wanted to attack Hachani’s line of dialogue with the government.
2000 – The military’s conduct in the armed conflict is sharply condemned nationally and internationally, following the publication of Major Habib Souaidia’s book, The Dirty War. The major had resigned and was living in exile in France. In his book, he revealed that during the 1990s, the military had repeatedly disguised itself as partisans and carried out massacres of civilians. Moreover, it had tortured Islamists to death. The Bouteflika government rejected demands from human rights activists to conduct a public and in-depth investigation into the violations.
2000 – Attacks on civilians and security forces continue. The violence is believed to have claimed 100,000 lives in Algeria since 1992.
2001 – In February, Bouteflika was heavily criticized for failing to curb the GIA massacres. The month before, he had declared that he would strike with an iron fist against the partisans who remained active, and February became one of the bloodiest months on the part of the GIA.
2001 – April / May – Protesters are killed in a violent clash between security forces and protesters in the Berber region of Kabylie. They are demonstrating because a teenager has died in police custody.
2001 – Maj. The Berber party, the Rally for Culture and Democracy, is withdrawing from the government in protest against the authorities’ treatment of the riots in Kabylie.
2001 – October. The government agrees to give the Berber language official status.
2001 – In November, hundreds of people die as a result of the worst floods in the country’s history.
2002 – March. President Bouteflika announces that the Berber language, Tamazight, is now the national language.
2002 – June. Prime Minister Ali Benflis’ party National Liberation Front (FLN) wins the election, which is, however, spoiled by violence and low turnout. The election is boycotted by 4 parties, two of which represent the Berbers.
2003 – In May, the country was hit by an earthquake that cost 1100 lives and injured 7000. Therefore, 3 days of national mourning were decreed.
2003 – June. The leader of the banned party FIS, Abassi Madani, and his deputy, Ali Belhadj, are being released after 12 years in prison.
2004 – In March, the government announced that a new oil pipeline, OZ2, would be commissioned in early 2005. It would contribute to increased exports of oil from the country. The pipeline was built by the national oil company in collaboration with the French-Italian-British consortium Sonatrach. The 800 km long oil pipeline runs from Haoud el Amra in the south of the country to Arzew on the Mediterranean coast, and will be able to transport the equivalent of 25% of French oil consumption. OZ2 follows the same route as OZ1 which was built 30 years earlier. Algeria’s oil reserves are estimated at 11.3 billion barrels, but continued oil exploration could increase this figure significantly.
2004 – April. President Bouteflika is re-elected in a landslide victory.
2004 – In June, the two Algerian journalists Mohammed Benchicou from the newspaper Le Matin and Hafnaoui Ghoul were arrested. Benchicou was sentenced to 2 years in prison and Ghoul was jailed for 2 months for slander. Both journalists had written about human rights violations in Algeria for the newspaper Le Soir d’Algérie. Iflg. national and international observers, the two attacks on press freedom were signs of a new wave of attacks on independent journalism in the country.
2005 – In January, the government declares that GIA leader Nourredine Boudiafi has been arrested and that his deputy commander has been killed. Thus, the authorities declared the GIA largely defeated.
2005 – In March, an official report is released acknowledging that the security forces were responsible for the disappearance of more than 6,000 civilians during the armed conflict in the 1990s.
2005 – September. Voters show support for the government’s plan to grant amnesty to the people involved in the 1992 killings.
2006 – February. Floods in Tindouf left 50,000 people homeless. The Portuguese and Italian military had to fly in 20 tons of tents along with other emergency equipment.
2007 – Maj. The ruling party won an absolute majority in the parliamentary elections. It happened under the impression of increasing violence in the country. By January, the Salafist group for Sermon and Fighting had changed its name to al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb and had at the same time launched a bloody offensive against the government.
