APS said Mr Bouteflika, who is 82 and in poor health, would take important decisions to ensure “continuity of the state’s institutions” before stepping down. Under Algeria’s constitution, Abdelkader Bensalah, chairman of the upper house of parliament, would take over as caretaker president for 90 days until elections are held. Mr Bouteflika, rarely seen in public since he suffered a stroke in 2013, at first sought to defuse the unrest by saying on March 11th he was dropping plans to run for a fifth term. But Mr Bouteflika signalled late on Sunday that he was on his way out when he appointed a caretaker cabinet headed by interim prime minister Noureddine Bedoui. Several opposition leaders on Sunday supported the army chief’s proposal that Mr Bouteflika’s capacity to govern be assessed under article 102 of the constitution.

Source: The Irish Times April 01, 2019 20:24 UTC