Algerian blogger sentenced ten years to prison
After more than a year of detention, Algerian blogger, Touati Merzoug, received a ten year sentence for ‘complicit relations with a foreign power’ and ‘inciting rebellion.’ The conviction is reportedly linked to an interview that Merzoug conducted over Skype and published online, with an Israeli diplomat. The interview shed light on protests and riots that burst in different parts of the country by Algerians to demonstrate against ‘austerity measures including an increase in value-added, income and property taxes, and a decrease in fuel subsidies.’ The Committee to Protect Journalists and Amnesty International decried the sentence and called for the independence of press in Algeria.
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