Algeria youths riot for second night

Riots in the capital have intensified since Wednesday

Algerian youths have rioted for a second night across the capital, Algiers, and in several other cities.

The riots have been linked to rising food prices, housing shortages, and wider social and political grievances.

A BBC correspondent says Algiers has emptied out in the late afternoon over the last two days, before rioters take to the streets, clashing with police.

The riots follow a period of rare unrest in neighbouring Tunisia, which has led to at least three deaths.

The BBC's Mohamed Arezki Himeur reports from Algiers that there has been sporadic rioting in Algeria since the new year, when the price of many food products increased sharply.

But the protests have intensified since Wednesday, our correspondent says.

Political frustration

They also spread to Bab el-Oued, a working class neighbourhood of symbolic importance. It was at the centre of the protest movement in 1988, at the beginning of a period of unrest that led to an Islamist insurgency in the 1990s.

The riots are widely seen as drawing on deep frustrations with the ruling elite and a lack of political freedom, as well as more immediate concerns about the cost of living, housing, and jobs.

During the riots this week, youths have ransacked shops, lit tyres in the street, and hurled stones at police.

Security forces responded with tear gas and high-pressure hoses.

Rioting has also been reported in cities including Constantine, Oran, and Bejaia.

The demonstrations in Tunisia began after a man set fire to himself on 17 December in the Sidi Bouzid region to protest against the police confiscating fruit and vegetables that he was selling without a permit.

Protests are rare in Tunisia, where there are tight controls aimed at preventing dissent.

As in Algeria, the unrest has been linked to frustrations with the president and the ruling elite, as well as to concerns over jobs and living costs.