Algeria’s army chief of staff, Lieutenant General Ahmed Gaid Salah has just passed away of a heart attack this morning, Algerian News Agency said on its Twitter official account.
General Salah was born on 13 January 1940. He was a senior leader in the Algerian People's National Army.
In 2004, Salah was appointed by former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to the position of chief of staff of the army.
On 15 September 2013, he was appointed Deputy Minister of Defense. General Salah was promoted to the rank of General in 1993. He was married and father of seven children.
On 26 March 2019, after months of anti-Bouteflika protests, General Salah compelled President Bouteflika to resign. armed forces, including the removal of General Salah himself from his top position.
In an effort to remove opposition, General Salah ordered the arrest of two former prime ministers as well as other former ministers and several business leaders who were close to presidential advisor Said Bouteflika.
His actions at that point gained him a lot of public support. The anti-corruption activity that started in the second quarter of 2019 was used by the Algerian anti-government movement as an opportunity to demand that the military hand over power to a civilian government, a demand that was rejected by General Salah. Instead, General Salah said that only a presidential election could bring the country out of its political crisis.
It is noteworthy that newly-elected Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has taken oath on Thursday to officially begin his duties for a five-year term replacing former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika.
Tebboune, former Algerian prime minister (PM), won the country’s presidential election, according to the national electoral commission. He gained 58% of the vote, enough to prevent a second round.
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