Algeria's Fractured Opposition

A young Algerian man immolated himself April 29 in the town of Jijel after local police demolished his vendor stand, sparking brief clashes between youths and security forces. Separately on April 29, about 200 young men peacefully demonstrated in Algiers against the cancellation of their short-term government employment contracts.

Such demonstrations have occurred almost daily since the beginning of the Arab Spring in 2011. However, while these protesters have represented a wide segment of Algerian society, they have so far failed to coalesce into a sustained, unified movement and do not yet pose a serious risk to the current ruling regime of President Abdel Aziz Bouteflika.