Several Algeria news outlets say blocked by authorities

SEVERAL Algerian news outlets announced on December 2 that their websites had been blocked, the latest in a series of alleged infringements of press freedom in the North African country.

“We vigorously denounce this arbitrary measure,” the news team at Twala, a newcomer on the Algerian media scene and one of the affected outlets, said i n a statement.

The online newspaper was not informed of the move and no explanation has been given for this “attack on press freedom”, Twala added.

The Casbah Tribune, an established outlet, likewise said its site had been blocked, adding in a statement on its Facebook page that the blockage could be circumvented by using a virtual private network ( VPN).

Twala, which launched six weeks ago, also said readers were able to access its site via a VPN, adding that its “team continues its work”.

The two outlets, which both produce news in French and Arabic, are not the first to encounter difficulties in Algeria this year.

Radio M, Maghreb Emergent, Interlignes, L’Avant-Garde and TSA have all complained that the authorities have censored their output.

Maghreb Emergent and Radio M also said on December 2 that they were again inaccessible, after being partially unblocked in October.

The communications ministry has not provided any explanation.

The Casbah Tribune was founded in 2017 by Khaled Drareni, who is also a correspondent for French-language TV5 Monde and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). He is currently in jail.

The 40-year-old was sentenced to a two-year prison term in September for his coverage of the protest movement that toppled Algeria’s long-time president Abdelaziz Bouteflika last year.

He was found guilty of “inciting an unarmed gathering” and “endangering national unity”, a ruling that drew widespread condemnation at home and abroad.

In early October, the Algerian government adopted a bill seeking to regulate online media activity.

Notably, it envisages that all electronic sites centring on Algerian news should be fully based in country, including their logistical, human and material resources.