Rioting Continues in Algeria

Fresh rioting broke out in the Algerian capital Algiers yesterday as police deployed around mosques and authorities suspended soccer championship matches after violent protests over food prices and unemployment.

The clashes came after the government raised the cost of staple foods. The cost of flour, salad oil and sugar have doubled in the past few months.

Protestors also say they want jobs in a country where the official unemployment rate of 10% is believed by many independent observers to be closer to 25 percent.

“Young people today either end up in prison or emigrate,” said one masked protestor. “The government is humiliating us. They are raising the price of sugar. We have to pay the rent, electricity, water, sugar, and oil. We are all poor.”

Mustapha Benbada, Algeria's Commerce Minister, said government officials were scheduled to meet Saturday to try to stop the rise in food prices.

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