Berber youth dead in renewed clash

The government has long faced unrest by Berbers

Clashes between Berber protesters and paramilitary police in eastern Algeria have left a young man dead and another seriously injured.

Berber activists said the youth was shot by police - a charge rejected by a senior officer.

Rioting was sparked off in the Kabylie region last year after the death in police custody of another young man.

Officially the disturbances claimed about 60 lives, but other estimates put the figure much higher.

Sporadic clashes have continued, and recently the intensity of protests has increased.

Berbers are seeking democratic reform, greater autonomy, and official recognition of their language and culture.

'Not carrying weapons'

In the latest confrontation, 19-year-old Yacine Betar died in hospital from gunshot wounds.

He was injured in protests in the town of Chemini on Thursday.

A spokesman for the Kabylie Citizens' Movement - which was formed after last year's riots - said he was shot in the head by paramilitary gendarmes.

Berbers were offered a concession on language by President Bouteflika

Another protester remained in hospital with serious injuries after also being shot, he said.

But gendarmerie commander Colonel Sabri denied his men were to blame, saying they were not carrying firearms.

Berber protests have increased in intensity recently.

The Kabylie Citizens' Movement says this is a sign of the rejection of President Bouteflika's offer earlier this month to recognise the Berber language, Tamazight, as a national language.

The group insists that all its demands should be met - including the withdrawal of gendarmes from the area.

Tension has also increased in the region in the run-up to parliamentary elections due at the end of May.

The Kabylie Citizens' Movement has called for a boycott of the poll - as has one of the political parties in the area, the Rally for Culture and Democracy.