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2 dead in new ethnic clashes in Algeria amid anti-riot troops strike

14 October 2014 03:59 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. At least two young Algerians were killed and more than a dozen others were injured in a new wave of sectarian violence in the province of Ghardaia, 600 km southeast of Algiers, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

Clashes erupted on Sunday night between members of the Arab Chaamba community and Mozabite Berbers of the Muslim Ibadi sect, while anti-riot troops continue to strike demanding higher wages and more rights.

Ambulance sirens shrieked as a medical source at the Ghardaia hospital confirmed to Xinhua that two youngsters were killed during the clashes. The source added that ten anti-riot troops were injured, three of whom are in critical condition.

Several houses, private properties and public institutions were set ablaze during the clashes that occurred in downtown Ghardaia and in the locality of Berriane, 45 km away from the province.

The clashes first erupted on Sunday when a group of youngsters set fire to palm trees in the dates-rich locality of Berriane, after that the two ethnic groups began to clash, leading anti-riot police to intervene and arrest five people.

But clashes erupted again downtown on Sunday night leading into Monday.

ANTI-RIOT TROOPS ON STRIKE

Anti-riot troops were rushed to Ghardaia 11 months ago to restore calm when previous scuffles between the two ethic groups broke out. But on Monday the troops launched a strike, complaining about tough working conditions and a lack of government response.

Members of the anti-riot division marched across the main street of downtown Ghardaia to the Central Police Station, urging the government to meet their three key demands, which included improving troops' living conditions, establishing a union, and meeting with Interior Minister Taib Belaiz.

The protesters snubbed dialogue proposals by senior police officials, as they urged Chief of the General Department of National Security Major General Abdelghani Hamel to quit.

The anti-riots troops have camped out near the Central Police Station headquarters, saying they will not leave until the interior minister arrives.

The province of Ghardaia has been hit, since last December, by a series of violent ethnic clashes between the Arab Chaamba community and the Mozabite Berbers of the Muslim Ibadi sect, which have claimed so far the lives of 15 people.