MENL | Countries


Country Name:	People's Democratic Republic of Algeria Al Jumhūrīyah al Jazā'irīyahad Dīmuqrāţīyah ash Sha'bīyah الجمهوريّة الجزائرية
Background:	After more than a century of rule by France, Algerians fought through much of the 1950s to achieve independence in 1962. Algeria's primary political party, the National Liberation Front (FLN), has dominated politics ever since. Many Algerians in the subsequent generation were not satisfied, however, and moved to counter the FLN's centrality in Algerian politics. The surprising first round success of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) in the December 1991 balloting spurred the Algerian army to intervene and postpone the second round of elections to prevent what the secular elite feared would be an extremist-led government from assuming power. The army began a crackdown on the FIS that spurred FIS supporters to begin attacking government targets. The government later allowed elections featuring pro-government and moderate religious-based parties, but did not appease the activists who progressively widened their attacks. The fighting escalated into an insurgency, which saw intense fighting between 1992-98 and which resulted in over 100,000 deaths - many attributed to indiscriminate massacres of villagers by extremists. The government gained the upper hand by the late-1990s and FIS's armed wing, the Islamic Salvation Army, disbanded in January 2000. However, small numbers of armed militants persist in confronting government forces and conducting ambushes and occasional attacks on villages. The army placed Abdelaziz BOUTEFLIKA in the presidency in 1999 in a fraudulent election but claimed neutrality in his 2004 landslide reelection victory. Longstanding problems continue to face BOUTEFLIKA in his second term, including the ethnic minority Berbers' ongoing autonomy campaign, large-scale unemployment, a shortage of housing, unreliable electrical and water supplies, government inefficiencies and corruption, and the continuing activities of extremist militants. The 2006 merger of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) with al-Qaida (followed by a change of name to al-Qaida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb) signaled an increase in bombings, including high-profile, mass-casualty suicide attacks targeted against the Algerian government and Western interests. Algeria must also diversify its petroleum-based economy, which has yielded a large cash reserve but which has not been used to redress Algeria's many social and infrastructure problems.
Area:	2,381,740 sq km
Population:	34,178,188 (July 2009 est.)
Ethnic Groups:	Arab-Berber 99%, European less than 1%
Borders:	Libya 982 km, Mali 1,376 km, Mauritania 463 km, Morocco 1,559 km, Niger 956 km, Tunisia 965 km, Western Sahara 42 km
Natural Resources:	petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, uranium, lead, zinc
Capital:	Algiers
Government Type:	republic
Independence:	5 July 1962 (from France)
Languages:	Arabic (official), French, Berber dialects
Currency:	Algerian Dinar
GMT:	GMT (+1)

Algeria's dialing code: 213

City	Dialing Code
Adrar	49
Ain Defla	27
Ain Temouchent	43
Alger	21
Annaba	38
Batna	33
Bechar	49
Bejaia	34
Biskra	33
Blida	25
Bordj Bou Arreridj	35
Bouira	26
Boumerdes	24
Chlef	27
Constantine	31
Djelfa	27
El Bayadh	49
El Oued	32
El Tarf	38
Ghardaia	29
Guelma	37
Illizi	29
Jijel	34
Khenchela	32
Laghouat	29
M’sila	35
Mascara	45
Medea	25
Mila	31
Mobile Phones	61
Mostaganem	45
Naama	49
Oran	41
Ouargla	29
Oum El Bouaghi	32
Relizane	46
Saida	48
Setif	36
Sidi Bel Abbes	48
Skikda	38
Souk Ahras	37
Tamenrasset	29
Tebessa	37
Tiaret	46
Tindouf	49
Tipaza	24
Tissemsilt	46
Tizi Ouzou	26
Tlemcen	43

Day

Holiday Name

January 1

New Year's Day

February 26

Mouloud (Birth of the Prophet)

February 26

Mouloud (Birth of the Prophet)

May 1

Labour Day

June 19

Revolutionary Readjustment

July 5

Independence Day

September 11

Eid al-Fitr (End of Ramadan)

November 1

Anniversary of the Revolution

November 17

Eid al-Adha (Feast of the Sacrifice)

December 7

Islamic New Year

December 16

Ashoura