Algerian independence war veteran, Lakhdar Bouregaa, has died at 87, his family said on Thursady, around two weeks after he contracted the coronavirus.
Bouregaa died in hospital in the capital Algiers where he was being treated, Algerian television said on Wednesday.
He was a prominent figure of the National Liberation Army fighting against colonial power France.
In 1963, one year after Algeria’s independence, he co-founded the Socialist Forces Front party with Hocine Ait Ahmed.
Bouregaa was a main opposition voice against successive governments, which led to his imprisonment several times.
He was vocal in his criticism of former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and took part in the mass protests that forced Bouteflika to step down in April 2019.
Two months later, Bouregaa was detained for around six months for allegedly criticising the military, but continued to express his support while detained for the months-long demonstrations demanding political reform in the North African country.