CNAN Judicial Case: Belkhadem and Temmar not summoned as witnesses

Tomorrow will be presented for a hearing 21 defendants, all of them executives of the national CNAN shipping Company, in front of the specialized Court of Sidi M’hamed in central Algiers.

The latter are accused of embezzlement of public funds, abuse of authority, mismanagement and illegal transfer of hard currency overseas…

Some lawyers in charge of the file have ruled out the presence of former Prime Minister Abdelaziz Belkhadem and former industry minister Abdelhamid Temmar as witnesses in this case.

While others believe that even if they are not explicitly mentioned, their presence at the Court could help clarify some lingering ambiguities during the upcoming trial.

The collective defense of the former director of the Company, currently in custody for four years, requested his provisional release because such a detention period  has far exceeded the legal limits and also because he is now sick.

This former director and his close executives are accused, among other things, of having sold dozens of ships in the context of privatization, which caused financial damage to the CNAN company of more than $ 36 million dollars, according to estimates from the General Inspectorate of Finance (IGF).