Former police chief detained

Algeria's former police chief Abdelghani Hamel has been detained for the alleged ‘diversion of funds and illicit enrichment’. Hamel, who was fired in June last year, appeared before an investigating magistrate in central Algiers on Friday. A report on the News24 site notes that the magistrate will question 19 people in the case, including former civil servants and real estate agents. Former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika's decision to fire Hamel last year came as a surprise, since he had been viewed as a potential successor. Algeria's legal system has launched a series of probes into corruption and embezzlement, targeting state officials and powerful businessmen close to the ex-President.