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A wave of controversy is sweeping the political arena in Algeria after the visit of the Algerian Minister of Religious Affairs and Endowments Yousef Belmehdi to the Grand Mosque of Paris.
The visit came at a sensitive time, as some consider the timing to be unfortunate, given its coincidence with the statements of the Dean of the Grand Mosque of Paris, Mr. Shams El–Din Hafeez, which were considered offensive to the Palestinian resistance.
Reactions were prompt, as Abdelali Hassani, the President of “Society for Peace” movement, the largest opposition party in the Algerian parliament, expressed his denunciation of this visit, in a symposium organized by “Al-Wasat” newspaper, indicating that the visit appears give the statements value.
He added that this visit came at an inappropriate time, stressing the need to punish the Dean of the Grand Mosque of Paris for those offensive statements against Algeria’s official status and the Palestinian resistance.
Former Culture and Information Minister, Mahieddine Amimour, expressed surprise at the minister’s visit, demanding an explanation as to whether Algeria had abandoned its famous slogan “We are with Palestinians, be they the oppressed or the oppressors.”
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