An Algerian court has released opposition figure Fethi Ghares and his wife, placing them under judicial supervision as they await trial for allegedly insulting President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and other charges, according to his lawyer.
Ghares, a prominent secular leftist politician, was accused of “insulting the president of the republic” and “spreading false news and hate speech through social media posts,” said his lawyer, Abdelghani Badi. His wife, Messaouda Cheballah, also a political activist, was charged with participating in the alleged offenses.
The couple must report to the court every 15 days and have been banned from using social media or speaking to the media until their trial date is set.
Ghares, previously arrested in 2021 and sentenced to prison for similar charges, was arrested again on Tuesday by plain-clothes police at his home in Algiers. His Democratic and Social Movement party, the successor to the Algerian Communist Party, has been banned since February 2023.