ALGIERS: Algerians voted Sunday on whether to approve a revised constitution that imposes term limits, promises new freedoms and is aimed at answering demands from pro-democracy protesters who pushed out their long-serving, autocratic president last year.
However, opponents of the amended constitution called for a boycott after they were barred from campaign venues or from expressing their views on public television or radio. The referendum is taking place symbolically on the 68th anniversary of the beginning of Algeria's war for independence from France.
Overall turnout was less than 6% at 11 a.m., three hours after polls opened. In one example of public discontent, residents in the opposition bastion of Tizi-Ouzou shut down voting stations to protest the referendum, prompting electoral authorities to annul the voting in 63 of the region's 67 towns.
Pro-democracy activists say the revised charter doesn’t go far enough to open up politics to a new generation of leaders. Islamist parties say it doesn't do enough to promote Islam and the Arabic language, and oppose a measure on religious freedom.
Meanwhile, the man who pushed for the referendum, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, is hospitalized in Germany after several people in his administration showed symptoms of the virus. The 74-year-old's exact ailment and whereabouts are unclear, though a presidential adviser said Sunday that Tebboune was “in good health” and continuing to undergo medical examinations.
For many Algerians, the most dramatic proposed constitutional change would allow the Algerian military to intervene abroad, in United Nations or African Union peacekeeping operations, a major departure from the current doctrine of non-interference.
The military has long played a key role in Algeria, and military chief Gen. Said Bengriha has campaigned around the country for a “yes" vote.
The revision of the constitution was among promises the president made when he was elected in December. It limits presidents and parliament members to two terms, makes it easier to create political parties, and hands some presidential powers to the prime minister, among other changes.
During a final campaign rally Wednesday, Prime Minister Abdelaziz Djerrad said the amendments would “make it possible to definitively turn the page on the old practices of management of public affairs, with the emergence of new institutions and new methods of exercising responsibilities based on democracy, competence, transparency.”
He insisted that it “reflects the major demands” of the Hirak protest movement, and will give young people and non-governmental actors more of a say in Algerian policies.
Hirak activists and their supporters, who want a wholesale overhaul of Algeria's leadership, see the referendum as an effort to look progressive while leaving the overall power structure in place.
“It is a denial of democracy,” professor Rachid Tlemçani told The Associated Press. “This revision is cosmetics to give a new face to the same system, which will not change.”
Some 23.5 million Algerian voters are eligible in to take part, though turnout is expected to be low because of the calls for a boycott, a lackluster campaign — and worries about the virus, which is linked to at least 1,964 deaths in Algeria and has infected more than 57,000 people.
Voting stations include primary schools that were disinfected for the referendum. Voters arrived masked and were ordered to maintain social distancing via markings on the ground and walls.
Voting began Friday in the sparsely populated Algerian desert, as election officials traveled in all-terrain vehicles to reach remote voters. Nearly 1 million Algerian voters abroad were allowed to start voting Saturday.
Initial results are expected after polls close Sunday night.
Algeria votes on new constitution amid opposition boycott
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Algeria votes on new constitution amid opposition boycott
- The referendum is seen as a test of strength for both Tebboune and the leaderless opposition “Hirak” protest movement
- Tebboune has been in hospital in Germany since last week after saying aides had tested positive for COVID-19
Airstrikes in northwestern Syria kill 25 people, says Syria’s White Helmets
DAMASCUS: The Syrian rescue service known as the White Helmets said early on Monday on X that at least 25 people have been killed in northwestern Syria in airstrikes carried out by the Syrian government and Russia on Sunday.
In Blinken call, Turkiye backs moves to ease Syria tension
- The flareup has also seen pro-Turkish militants groups attacking both government forces and Kurdish YPG fighters in and around the northern Aleppo province over the weekend, a Syrian war monitor said
ISTANBUL: Turkiye’s top diplomat and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke Sunday about the “rapidly developing” conflict in Syria where militants have made gains.
Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan discussed by telephone “the need for de-escalation and the protection of civilian lives and infrastructure in Aleppo and elsewhere,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement.
The call came after Syrian militants and their Turkish-backed allies launched their biggest offensive in years, seizing control of Syria’s second-largest city Aleppo from forces loyal to President Bashar Assad.
According to a Turkish foreign ministry source, Fidan told Blinken Ankara was “against any development that would increase instability in the region” and said Turkiye would “support moves to reduce the tension in Syria.”
He also said “the political process between the regime and the opposition should be finalized” to ensure peace in Syria while insisting that Ankara would “never allow terrorist activities against Turkiye nor against Syrian civilians.”
The flareup has also seen pro-Turkish militant groups attacking government forces and Kurdish People’s Defense Units (YPG) fighters in and around Aleppo, a Syrian war monitor said.
Turkiye sees the YPG as an offshoot of the banned Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has led a decades-long insurgency against Ankara.
The Syria offensive began Wednesday, the same day a truce between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah came into effect.
More than 400 people have so far been killed in the offensive, most of them combatants, a Syrian war monitor said.
The State Department said the two also discussed “humanitarian efforts in Gaza and the need to bring the war to an end” as well as efforts to secure the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
Fidan said Israel “should keep its promises in order for the Lebanon ceasefire to become permanent” and called for a ceasefire in Gaza “as soon as possible.”
The pair also discussed Ukraine and South Caucasus, the source said.
Russia says helping Syrian army ‘repel’ insurgents in three northern provinces
- Russia launched airstrikes on militant targets in Aleppo for the first time since 2016
MOSCOW: Russia on Sunday said it was helping the Syrian army “repel” armed insurgents in three northern provinces, as Moscow seeks to support the government led by its ally Bashar al-Assad.
An Islamist-dominated militant alliance launched an offensive against the Syrian government on Wednesday, with Syrian forces losing control of the city of Aleppo on Sunday, according to a war monitor.
“The Syrian Arab Army, with the assistance of the Russian Aerospace Forces, is continuing its operation to repel terrorist aggression in the provinces of Idlib, Hama and Aleppo,” the Russian military said in a briefing on its website.
“Over the past day, missile and bombing strikes were carried out on places where militants and equipment were gathered,” it said in the same briefing, without saying where or by whom.
It said at least “320 militants were destroyed.”
Russia announced earlier this week that it was bombing militant targets in the war-torn country, with Russian warplanes striking parts of Aleppo — Syria’s second city — for the first time since 2016, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Moscow is Syrian leader Assad’s most important military backer, having turned the tide of the civil war in his favor when it intervened in 2015.
Jordanian, Iraqi FMs discuss Gaza, Syria conflicts
- The ministers urged the international community to take “effective and immediate” measures to address Palestinian crisis
AMMAN: Jordan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Safadi spoke on the phone with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein on Sunday to discuss strengthening bilateral ties and addressing pressing regional issues, Jordan News Agency reported.
According to a statement from Jordan’s Foreign Ministry, they stressed the urgency of halting Israel’s aggression in Gaza and ensuring the swift and comprehensive delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory.
The ministers urged the international community to take “effective and immediate” measures to address the crisis, Jordan News Agency reported.
They also expressed concern over the conflict in Syria, emphasizing the importance of a political resolution that ensures the country’s stability, territorial integrity and sovereignty while safeguarding its citizens and eliminating terrorism.
Safadi and Hussein reaffirmed their commitment to ongoing communication and coordination to address regional challenges.
Bleak Christmas in Bethlehem as families quit West Bank
- Tourists usually pour in, but Gaza war keeps them away; locals look to emigrate as situation worsens
WEST BANK: For a second year running, there is no Christmas cheer in Bethlehem, with tourists shunning the Palestinian city and many residents seeking a way out as the Gaza war grinds on.
Bethlehem’s Manger Square in front of the Church of the Nativity is largely deserted and souvenir shops are shuttered.
Once again, there are no plans to put up the traditional light-festooned Christmas Tree in the ancient settlement that is venerated by Christians as the birthplace of Jesus and now sits in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
“During these difficult times that our Palestinian cities are going through, especially in the Gaza Strip, it is difficult to show any signs of joy and happiness,” said Issa Thaljieh, an Orthodox priest who ministers at the Nativity Church.
Adding to the gloom, many local Christian families are also looking to escape, demoralized by both the tourist slump that has ravaged their economy, and the constant threat of violence hovering over the territory northeast of Gaza.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Once again, there are no plans to put up the traditional light-festooned Christmas Tree in the ancient settlement.
• Adding to the gloom, many local Christian families are also looking to escape, demoralized by both the tourist slump that has ravaged their economy.
“The emigration out of Bethlehem is increasing daily and monthly, and ... this has a negative impact on the city,” Thaljieh said.
Christian communities have been in decline across the Middle East for generations, and the West Bank is no exception.
In the last year of British rule over the region in 1947, some 85 percent of Bethlehem’s population were Christian. As of a 2017 census, the overall population of Bethlehem was 215,514 with only 23,000 Christians among them. That puts the percentage of Christians in Bethlehem in 2017 at around 10 percent.
Locals say the rate of departure has been gathering steam in recent months in the cradle of Christianity, with the economic lifeblood of the city no longer flowing and the Israeli occupation preventing freedom of movement around the territory.
Bethlehem resident Alaa Afteem, who runs a falafel restaurant, said one of his cousins had recently moved to Australia.
“Due to the bad living conditions and bad financial conditions, people have started looking for better opportunities for their children, for better education, for a better future,” he said.
Israel has built Jewish settlements, deemed illegal by most countries, across the territory. Israel disputes this, citing historical ties to the land. Several of its ministers live in settlements and favor their expansion.
Violence has surged across the hilly land since the start of the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza in October last year.
Hundreds of Palestinians — including armed fighters, stone-throwing youths and civilian bystanders — have died in clashes with Israeli security forces, while dozens of Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks, Israeli authorities say.
Difficult at the best of times, travel between West Bank cities has become increasingly fraught.
“There is no security if you are commuting between districts within the West Bank like between Bethlehem, Ramallah, Jericho, Hebron,” Afteem said.
Munther Isaac, a pastor at Bethlehem’s Lutheran Church, says local Muslim families have also been emigrating, squeezed by both financial problems and broader worries about the future.
“There is the fear that this war might extend to areas in the West Bank, especially after the arming of the settlers and the announcement of the possible annexation of the West Bank,” he said.
The West Bank has been transformed by the rapid growth of Jewish settlements over the past two years, with strident settlers pushing to impose Israeli sovereignty on the area.
Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said on X in October that since the start of the Gaza conflict more than 120,000 firearms had been distributed to Israeli settlers to protect themselves.
In Isaac’s church, the nativity scene has a figure of the baby Jesus lying in a pile of rubble. “We feel that this war will never end,” he said.
