Such as Algeria's finance minister and former national security chief, were brought before the court yesterday to investigate corruption files, joining a list of authority figures facing judicial inquiries since the popular protests forced President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to step down this month. Fishing in Hammamet area in the state of Tebessa, during their protest to demand their right to drink from the spring water.
State television said Finance Minister Mohamed Lukal, a former governor of the central bank that Bouteflika appointed to the ministry last month alone, is under investigation for waste of public money and illegal privileges.
He also appeared before the investigating judge in Tebaza, west of Algiers, former National Security Director General Abdelghani Hamel and his son. Last year, Bouteflika sacked Hamel for undisclosed reasons. State television said Hamel was on trial as part of an investigation into "illegal activities", exploiting influence, seizing land and misusing his office.
There was no comment from either of the men or their defense team. According to the Algerian judicial system, judges can access the ongoing investigations and determine whether the charges against the suspects require their detention or release until investigations are completed.
Algeria's streets have been marred by demonstrations since last February to call for the overthrow of Bouteflika and isolate the political elite that dominated power throughout his 20-year rule. Bouteflika resigned on April 2 after pressure from the army, but the protests continued with the call for power to be handed over to a new civilian-led government.
At least five billionaires, some close to Bouteflika, were arrested on charges of involvement in corruption scandals.
The speaker of the parliament, Abdul Qadir bin Saleh, became interim president of the country, after Bouteflika stepped down, but the street pressed for his dismissal. Presidential elections are scheduled for July 4.
On the other hand, 13 people were injured yesterday by gunshots in the Hammamet area in the Wilayat of Tebessa during a protest in front of a bottled water factory to demand their right to drink from the spring water, APS reported.
The agency quoted the security department of Tebesa (580 km east of Algiers) as saying that the protests took place in front of the mineral water plant "Yukos" when residents of the Hammamet area "demanded their right to use the water sources before filling" in the bottles to market them. Tension between residents and owners of the factory escalated. "Gunpowder ammunition was used by these people to disperse protesters, who set fire to rubber wheels and a water truck," the source said.
According to state television, the fire was set on fire in the factory, and pictures of the fire were consumed, without giving further details.
The agency noted that tensions escalated as the authorities granted "a new license to the mineral water bottling plant to exploit new sources that represent by population the resources to provide them with drinking water."
The Yukos plant, owned by the Baalouj family, consists of three buildings with an area of 1400 square meters and a production capacity of up to 135 million bottles of water of 1.5 and 0.5 liters, according to the company's website.
The protests began yesterday morning at a gathering of residents in front of the municipality of Hammamet, demanding that they be provided with safe drinking water, especially that the municipality of Hammamet is known for its underground water supply and natural resources.
After the municipal authorities refused to respond to the drinking water crisis, residents poured out their anger at the water plant. They went to the company's site to protest. They burned a water truck and the guards confronted them with gunshots.