Mohamed Larbi Zitout
Encyclopedia
Mohamed Larbi Zitout is a well-known Algeria
n activist and former diplomat.
After graduating from the Ecole Nationale d'Administration in Algiers
and obtaining a master's degree in International Relations, he pursued a career in diplomacy. By 1995, he had become Algeria's Ambassador to Libya
. In 1995, however - three years into the Algerian Civil War
- he resigned from his position and emigrated to the United Kingdom
. He claimed to have learned that the Armed Islamic Group
s, whose atrocities were already becoming prominent, were in many cases being controlled by the government as part of a deliberate strategy:
Since leaving Algeria, he has become an outspoken opponent of the Algerian government and human rights advocate. He has been interviewed or appeared as a commentator in a number of newspapers and broadcast media, such as the BBC, ABC
and Al-Jazeera, and has contributed chapters to An Inquiry into the Algerian Massacres ("Les Régimes Arabes et le Conflit Algérien", p. 847) and Quelle réconciliation pour l'Algérie? ("La reconciliation passe par réhabilitation des victimes, de la nation et de l'Etat", p. 121.) He is a founding member of Justitia Universalis, a human rights organisation set up in 2001 dedicated to fighting impunity, and is the spokesperson for Al Karama for Human Rights, an organisation for human rights in the Arab world.
In 2007, he co-founded Rachad
, an organisation dedicated to overthrowing the corrupt Algerian government through mass nonviolent resistance.
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n activist and former diplomat.
After graduating from the Ecole Nationale d'Administration in Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
and obtaining a master's degree in International Relations, he pursued a career in diplomacy. By 1995, he had become Algeria's Ambassador to Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
. In 1995, however - three years into the Algerian Civil War
Algerian Civil War
The Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups which began in 1991. It is estimated to have cost between 150,000 and 200,000 lives, in a population of about 25,010,000 in 1990 and 31,193,917 in 2000.More than 70 journalists were...
- he resigned from his position and emigrated to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. He claimed to have learned that the Armed Islamic Group
Armed Islamic Group
The Armed Islamic Group is an Islamist organisation that wants to overthrow the Algerian government and replace it with an Islamic state...
s, whose atrocities were already becoming prominent, were in many cases being controlled by the government as part of a deliberate strategy:
- From 1995 onwards, these groups were no longer merely infiltrated, but completely taken over; they became a counter-guerrilla, counter-revolutionary phenomenon. The GIA became another armed branch, theoretically Islamist but in practice doing the work of the military securityMilitary securityMilitary security implies the capability of a nation-state to defend itself, and/or deter military aggression. Alternatively, military security implies the capability of a nation-state to enforce its policy choices by use of military force. The term "military security" is considered synonymous with...
, of the Algerian regime.
- Muhamad Labri Zitout, antiguo viceembajador argelino en Libia, aseguró que un responsable de la seguridad le confesó: "La gran mayoría del GIA somos nosotros mismos". (Mohamed Larbi Zitout, former Algerian Deputy Ambassador to Libya, insists that a security official confessed to him: "The great majority of the GIA are us ourselves.")
Since leaving Algeria, he has become an outspoken opponent of the Algerian government and human rights advocate. He has been interviewed or appeared as a commentator in a number of newspapers and broadcast media, such as the BBC, ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
and Al-Jazeera, and has contributed chapters to An Inquiry into the Algerian Massacres ("Les Régimes Arabes et le Conflit Algérien", p. 847) and Quelle réconciliation pour l'Algérie? ("La reconciliation passe par réhabilitation des victimes, de la nation et de l'Etat", p. 121.) He is a founding member of Justitia Universalis, a human rights organisation set up in 2001 dedicated to fighting impunity, and is the spokesperson for Al Karama for Human Rights, an organisation for human rights in the Arab world.
In 2007, he co-founded Rachad
Rachad
Rachad is an Algerian political movement. Its stated objective is to "break with political practices in place since independence" and "establish a state in which the rule of law, democratic principles and good governance prevail" through non-violent means...
, an organisation dedicated to overthrowing the corrupt Algerian government through mass nonviolent resistance.