In June, President Bouteflika decided to grant mercy...

In June, President Bouteflika decided to grant mercy to fundamentalists if they surrendered following the "civil conciliation" law, approved by a large majority of the Parliament and part of an agreement between Government and the group "Islamic Army of Safety." This law provides for a reduction of penalty for members of fundamentalist armed groups if they "turned state's evidence," and did not commit blood crimes in six months. Furthermore, those responsible for slaughter, rape or dynamite attacks who caused murder but who handed themselves in, would be tried but receive neither the death sentence nor life in prison.