Moubarek pays unofficial visit to Algeria

Egyptian President Hossni Moubarek arrived to Algiers Sunday on a one-day visit to present his condolences to his Algerian counterpart over the death of his brother.

• This visit was not scheduled and does not have an official character. It aims at showing sympathy to President Bouteflika and the Algerian people over the sad event.
• Moubarek’s visit is considered the first one to Algeria since a crisis was triggered between Algeria and Egypt in November 2009.
• Bilateral relations between Algeria and Egypt witnessed tension following football matches held on November 14th and 18th last year respectively in Cairo and Oum Dermane. Egyptian fans attacked a bus carrying Algeria’s players wounding a number of them. Tension was fuelled by Egypt’s media which launched a fierce campaign against Algeria and denigrated the Algerian people’s symbols and their history especially martyrs.
• The president’s brother Doctor Mustapha Bouteflika passed away Friday after he had been suffering from a disease for 18 months.