“Belloumi affair”: Happy ending, at last!

“”Echorouk” newspaper quoted official sources as announcing that the long-running “Belloumi affair” has been definitively settled after a formal reconciliation encounter last Saturday in the Egyptian capital Cairo in the presence of the chairmen of the Olympic committees of Algeria and Egypt and the lawyers of the 2 parties at issue.The positive breakthrough in this 20 year- old affair involving Lakhdar Belloumi and an Egyptian Doctor came after the latter’s decision to forsake all the legal proceedings brought many years ago, against the former Algerian international football player.The Egyptian Doctor, who lost an eye during a brawl in a Cairo hotel lounge between Algerian footballers and a group of Egyptian supporters, has officially dropped his lawsuit against Lakhdar Belloumi whom he accused of being behind his serious eye injury in the late 80’s.The latter has always claimed his innocence in the affair.Belloumi is said to have presented all the same, through the Algerian official delegation, formal apologies to the Egyptian Doctor. As a result, all the legal charges weighing on Lakhdar Belloumi were scrapped by the Egyptian justice, including the International arrest warrant issued several years ago by “Interpol” against the former Algerian International.It should be noted that the issue was also taken up by Algerian state officials who endeavoured, in conjunction with their Egyptian counterparts, to thrash-out a lasting solution to this vexed affair.Such a reconciliation endeavour was at last crowned with success to the immense relief of Lakhdar Belloumi and his countless fans in Algeria and elsewhere in the world.