Gulf News

Algeria’s Bouteflika eyeing re-election

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Algeria’s frail President Abdul Aziz Bouteflika, in power since 1999, will stand for a fifth term at elections next year, the head of his party said on Sunday.

National Liberation Front chief Djamel Ould Abbes said Bouteflika, who suffered a stroke in 2013, would be the party’s candidate at the vote set for April 2019, state news agency APS reported.

“Bouteflika is the candidate of the FLN for the presidenti­al election,” Ould Abbes was quoted as saying at a meeting with lawmakers from the party.

“His candidacy has been demanded by all the FLN cadres and activists across the country,” he said.

The FLN central committee will meet soon to formalise the candidacy, Ould Abbes’ chief of staff Nadir Boulegroun­e told AFP.

Diminished mobility

Bouteflika, 81, has yet to announce his candidacy officially. The veteran leader has been weak since suffering the 2013 stroke, which diminished his mobility and forced him to work from his residence in Zeralda, west of the capital Algiers.

He has since travelled abroad several times to undergo medical treatment in France and Switzerlan­d.

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