Hundreds of Algerians were gathering on Friday in the capital Algiers to demand an overhaul of the political system after long-serving president Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigned under pressure from the powerful army and street protesters.
Protesters in central Algiers carried placards demanding the departure of incumbent Prime Minister Noureddine Bedoui, appointed by Bouteflika; head of the parliament’s upper house Abdelkader Bensaleh; and chairman of the Constitutional Council Tayeb Belaiz.
The three are largely seen as allies of Bouteflika, who announced his resignation on Tuesday after 20 years in power.
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Protesters, however, regard the resignation of the 82-year-old ailing leader as falling short of their demands for broader political reforms.
“Algerians have not yet achieved their objective,” protester Bashir Khaluli, 39, said.
“Our demand is clear and not confined to a single person. It encompasses the entire regime that has controlled the country for over 20 years,’’ he said.
Another demonstrator, Mahi Zalani, raised a placard reading “No to the Bs’’, referring to Bedoui, Bensaleh and Belaiz.
“The Algerian people know well their way to freedom. No one, whoever he may, will stand in their way,” she told dpa.
Bouteflika suffered a stroke in 2013 and has rarely been seen in public since then.
His term had been due to end on April 28. (NAN)
