Youcef Belmahdi: “Secularism Can Not Be The Only Protector Of Algeria”

Some parties Algeria promote that the country has no solution but “secularism”, Minister of Religious Affairs and Endowments, Youcef Belmehdi, said on Sunday.

He explained that Algeria for 14 centuries is a Muslim country and will remain so thanks to its scientists and those wishing to protect its authority.

During his announcement of the launching of scientific convoys in Dar El Imam in Algiers, Belmahdi was surprised by some of the slogans that were calling for the liberation of the Algerian people, wondering in this context: “The Algerian people should be liberated from whom? How can secularism be the sole protector and guardian of Algeria? Since when? We are Muslims for 14 centuries!”.

The minister called on everyone to protect Algeria from the unrest, adding: “We must avoid the skepticism, the debilitating and spreading controversion and rumors, and there will be coordination with state institutions and the media to protect the state and the Algerian people”, asserting that mosques are centers of peace that illuminate the path of Algerians and a circle that protects them from any thought that does not serve them, especially as this exists.

“I refuse to import scientists from outside Algeria, at a time when the country is replete with many scientists who seek to protect the reference and unified doctrine of Algerians”, noting the role of the National People’s Army in protecting Algeria and its borders: “The army leadership is working day and night to protect the country and its people”.