The decision to release 2,100 suspected or convicted Islamist rebels in Algeria comes as part of the national reconciliation plan led by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to help Algeria close the door on a decade-long civil war, which killed between 100,000 and 150,000 people and cost the country an estimated $20 billion in damages. The President?s amnesty plan was overwhelmingly approved in a referendum put in front of the Algerian people in September 2005 . In addition to amnesty for prisoners, the plan allows for families of victims to receive compensation from the Islamic militants or from the Algerian government, depending on which side was responsible for the death.
A number of people thought to be languishing in Algerian prisoners may be among those who ?disappeared? at the hands of government authorities throughout the civil war, leaving relatives only to wonder about their fates. Typical of civil wars throughout the world, Algeria?s prisons are also thought to be swollen with individuals jailed on suspicion or on the basis of non-violent political opposition. The amnesty, which will allow people to return to their families or will allow families of Algeria?s ?disappeared? to know the fates of their relatives, can provide a critical sense of closure for the war-wracked country.
While such a move may be viewed as a step toward real national healing and reconciliation on the part of the government and could even be called noble, the realistic security ramifications will still make other countries, including western nations, nervous. The mess of mass roundups, the confusion of civil war, and the lack of due process all mean that among the 2,100 released likely will be future agents of terror, perhaps made more radical by their time in prison. Among those recently released from Algeria?s prisons is Ali Belhaj , a leader of the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS), who was recently jailed for approving of the kidnapping of two Algerian diplomats in Iraq , who were later executed by Abu Musaab al-Zarqawi?s network (Terrorist Incident forthcoming). Abu Musaab al-Zarqawi himself, along with others who fought with him, was released in a similar amnesty granted by Jordan in 1999 when King Abdullah II ascended to the throne. While Algeria?s Islamists may be willing to make piece with Bouteflika, they also may be primed to focus their Jihad outside of Algeria’s borders.
The recent announcement of greater security cooperation between the United States and Algeria will hopefully include cooperation that will allow for close monitoring and information sharing to pick out future terrorists among the innocent victims of civil war.