Algeria’s intelligence services are in a state of unprecedented turmoil. Since 19 July the heads of all three major intelligence services have been replaced (Algeria Politics & Security – 06.09.22).

With this chaos we might at last be getting an answer to the perennial question of who has been protecting Sonatrach’s controversial CEO, Toufik Hakkar, over recent years. It now appears that Hakkar’s ‘godfather’ may have been none other than Major General Abdelghani Rachedi who, until very recently, was the powerful head of the Générale de la Sécurité Intérieure (DGSI). 

Last week, we were led to believe that Rachedi had been retired on the grounds of ill-health but we have since learnt that he is facing investigations and possible arrest. We now know that Rachedi — who headed the DGSI from April 2020 until July 2022 and the DDSE from July until early September 2022 — was officially served with an ’Interdiction de sortie du territoire national (ISTN) which bans him from leaving the country. We believe that this came into force on 3 September when Rachedi left the DDSE and was replaced by General M’henna Djebbar. This meant that Rachedi was unable to obtain authorisation to return to France to continue his medical treatment (Algeria Politics & Security – 30.08.22), and was instead obliged to undergo medical monitoring at Algiers’ Ain Naâdja military hospital. 

What has Rachedi — the strongman of the intelligence services throughout most of President Abdelmajid Tebboune’s presidency — done to deserve this treatment? We do not know and this must currently rely on hearsay and speculation. According to our sources, however, he is thought to be the subject of several investigations relating to his suspicious management of certain very sensitive security files. We do not yet know whether these are focusing on national security issues or Rachedi’s alleged business connections through which he allegedly abused his power and intervened on behalf of certain controversial decision-makers and businessmen.

It is strongly rumoured, however, that one of the latter and the most significant was Sonatrach’s CEO, Toufik Hakkar. There is also good reason to believe that Energy Minister Mohamed Arkab was also linked to Rachedi through this same business connections. Sources close to Hakkar believe that Rachedi’s sudden demise will have left him ‘orphaned’ and without his ‘godfather.’ 

We have long wondered who has guaranteeing him Hakkar protection but we should soon know more as the investigations into Rachedi run their course. Hakkar always presented Rachedi as his main ally in the regime which ultimately presides over Sonatrach’s destiny.

Since Rachedi headed the DGSI, no single investigation was ever carried out into the suspicious actions and manoeuvres of Sonatrach’s general management. These include: the anomalies in the file for the Tébessa phosphate mines mega-project; the controversial awarding of several contracts to Chinese companies; and the fact that no senior Sonatrach officials were ever investigated by the DGSI despite verifiable and supportive documentary evidence. 

This relationship between Rachedi and Hakkar now also explains why Menas Associates has suggested on numerous occasions that President Tebboune either did not understand or was ill-informed about the hydrocarbons sector and what was going on in Sonatrach.