Algerian prison set to be built in desert
Algerian authorities have announced the new project of building a “high-security prison intended for drug traffickers and drug lords”. According to Democrata on 3 September, the location would be in the Sahara Desert, specifically in the old military barracks in Tanesruft.
The prison will be in the southernmost part of the country, in a particularly inhospitable climate. The statement released by the Presidency explains, “It has been decided to convert a barracks belonging to the National Popular Army in Tanesruft, in the Sahara, into a high-security prison intended for drug traffickers and drug lords.”
Algerian authorities have been fighting drug violence and crime, while potentially expecting higher rates in the future. The decision was taken as part of a resolution during a recent session of the Supreme Security Council, chaired by Algerian President Tebboune.
The council has “praised the efforts made by the National Popular Army and the security services,” while agreeing to “create a specialized security agency to combat them, as is done in many countries, such as the United States”.
In an effort to fight drug-related crime on the territory, Algeria has introduced cash rewards for citizens who provide valuable intelligence in the fight against the drug trade.
On 4 August, a key co-founder of France’s notorious DZ Mafia drug trafficking network, Mehdi Laribi, has been arrested in Algeria. This arrest followed a breakthrough in judicial cooperation between Paris and Algiers, which have been simultaneously dealing with the DZ Mafia, which controls large amounts of drug trafficking through Europe and Algeria.
As Mehdi Laribi possessed dual nationality, he fled to Algeria to operate from abroad, while also knowing that Algeria does not extradite its nationals. His capture was made possible only by a shift in diplomatic and judicial relations between the two countries.
The creation of a specialised security agency, mimicking other national organisations such as the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), will concentrate intelligence and state capacities.
Democrata, Maghrebi.org
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