Algeria travel information
After more than a century of rule by France, Algerians fought
through much of the 1950s to achieve independence in 1962. Algeria's primary political party, the National Liberation Front
(FLN), has dominated politics ever since. Many Algerians in the subsequent generation were not satisfied, however, and moved
to counter the FLN's centrality in Algerian politics. The surprising first round success of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS)
in the December 1991 balloting spurred the Algerian army to intervene and postpone the second round of elections to prevent
what the secular elite feared would be an extremist-led government from assuming power. The army began a crack down on the FIS
that spurred FIS supporters to begin attacking government targets. The government later allowed elections featuring
pro-government and moderate religious-based parties, but did not appease the activists who progressively widened their
attacks. The fighting escalated into an insurgency, which saw intense fighting between 1992-98 and which resulted in over
100,000 deaths - many attributed to indiscriminate massacres of villagers by extremists. The government gained the upper hand
by the late-1990s and FIS's armed wing, the Islamic Salvation Army, disbanded in January 2000. However, small numbers of
armed militants persist in confronting government forces and conducting ambushes and occasional attacks on villages. The army
placed Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA in the presidency in 1999 in a fraudulent election but claimed neutrality in his 2004 landslide
reelection victory. Longstanding problems continue to face BOUTEFLIKA in his second term, including the ethnic minority
Berbers' ongoing autonomy campaign, large-scale unemployment, a shortage of housing, unreliable electrical and water
supplies, government inefficiencies and corruption, and the continuing - although significantly degraded - activities of
extremist militants. Algeria must also diversify its petroleum-based economy, which has yielded a large cash reserve but which
has not been used to redress Algeria's many social and infrastructure problems. Algeria assumed a two-year seat on the UN
Security Council in January 2004.
Source: The World FactbookMore...
Cities
Local currency is the Algerian Dinar
Algerian Dinar =
Airlines based in Algeria
| Air Algerie |