Algerian Court releases opposition figure Fethi Ghares

An Algerian court has released Fethi Ghares, a prominent opposition figure, on Thursday under strict judicial supervision while he awaits trial for allegedly insulting President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, according to his lawyer.

Fethi Ghares, 49, a former coordinator of the now-banned Democratic and Social Movement (MDS), was arrested at his home on Tuesday and taken to an undisclosed location, according to his wife and the National Committee for the Liberation of Detainees (CNLD). 

Ghares was previously detained in late June 2021 during the Hirak protests, a pro-democracy movement that led to the ousting of former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. He was sentenced to two years in prison in January 2022 but was released in March 2022 after his sentence was reduced on appeal.

Ghares had been actively involved in the Hirak movement since its inception in 2019, which called for a radical overhaul of the political system that has been in place since Algeria's independence in 1962. He faced charges for "insulting President Tebboune," "insulting a state institution," and "spreading information that could harm national unity" and "public order."

The MDS, the successor to the Algerian Communist Party, was banned in February 2023. According to the CNLD, dozens of individuals linked to the Hirak movement or advocating for individual freedoms remain imprisoned in Algeria.

In February, Amnesty International stated that five years after the Hirak protests began, the Algerian government continues to "suppress the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly," targeting critical voices of dissent.