The trial of a number of Bouteflika figures, including his brother and two former intelligence chiefs, has begun

The trial of Said Bouteflika, brother of former Algerian president and former intelligence chiefs, as well as the head of a political party, began on Monday morning at a military court south of Algiers.

Algerian media reported that Said Bouteflika, former director of the powerful intelligence services for 25 years, Mohamed Median known as the title of "Tawfiq", the man succeeded by her head Osman Tartak, and the head of the Trotsky Labor Party Louisa Hanoune; appeared before the court.

According to local media, the authorities imposed tight security measures around the court and the roads leading to it this morning.

The former president of the Constitutional Council, Tayeb Belaiz, one of Bouteflika's loyalists, arrived at the court to testify, according to the same sources.

Said Bouteflika and the two former intelligence chiefs were detained on May 5, while Louisa Hanoune was remanded in custody on May 9.

The military judiciary accused them of "conspiring against the powers of the army and the state," a charge for which they could face five to ten years in prison, according to the Military Justice and Criminal Law.

Hannoun's defense lawyer admitted that she had participated in a meeting with Said Bouteflika and Tawfiq on March 27, the day after Army Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Ahmed Kayed Saleh demanded that Bouteflika resign publicly.

A few days later, Lieutenant General Kaid Saleh El Said accused Bouteflika, Medine and Tartark - without naming them - of meeting to conspire against the army.

During a hearing on May 14 as part of an investigation targeting the brother of the former president, Khaled Nizar, a former strongman in Algeria in the 1990s, was heard as a witness.

Nizar revealed that Bouteflika told him that he intended to sack Lieutenant General Kayed Saleh in order to put an end to the protest movement against his brother.

He is known to have been the real strongman in the presidential palace, but without constitutional powers.

Nizar and his son Lotfi were charged with "conspiracy" and have been issued an international arrest warrant since August 6 by the Blida Military Court. Algerian media reported that they fled to Spain at the beginning of the summer.

Algeria has been experiencing unprecedented protests since February 22, forcing Abdelaziz Bouteflika to step down for a fifth term and resign on April 2, after two decades of rule.

Since then, the judiciary has launched a series of investigations on suspicion of corruption against political, military and business leaders accused of benefiting from their privileged links with Bouteflika's circles.