Algerians stage partial strike amid protests

By Hassan Jibril

ALGIERS (AA) – Algerians launched a partial strike on Sunday as part of protests against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's re-election bid.

The strike has got a varying response in a number of provinces such as Jijel, Setif and Constantine in eastern Algeria and the central provinces of Bouira, Bejaia and Tizi Ouzou, according to Anadolu Agency correspondents on the ground.

For days, activists have been campaigning for a general strike and civil disobedience in protest of Bouteflika's bid to secure a fifth term in power.

The calls have forced Algerian civilians to rush to the markets to secure their needs of basic commodities, amid long queues in front of gas stations.

For the third consecutive week, thousands of Algerians took to the streets to protest Bouteflika’s bid to run for re-election.

Bouteflika ruled Algeria since 1999.

Opposition figures have repeatedly urged the aging president, who in 2013 was treated for a blood clot in the brain, to refrain from contesting the election.