ALGIERS, May 5 (Xinhua) -- A military court in Algeria on Sunday placed under custody two former intelligence senior officials and Said Bouteflika, brother of former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, local media reported.
The two officials are General Mohamed Mediene, alias Toufik, who is former chief of intelligence, and General Athmane Tartag, alias Bachir, also former intelligence boss.
According to state run television, detectives accompanying the three men to the military court in Blida province, 50 km southwest Algiers.
The prosecutor at the Military Court of Appeal ordered to place them under custody over "undermining the authority of the army" and "conspiracy against the State" in accordance with Article 11 of the Military Criminal Code, it reported.
The three officials were auditioned on Saturday by detectives of Interior Security Department, as they were accused publicly by Army Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Ahmed Gaid Salah of plotting schemes against the army and the nation to sow chaos in a bid to thwart the popular protest movement that erupted across Algeria demanding political change.
General Toufik served as intelligence boss from 1990 to 2015.
Tartag is considered as close member of the presidential clan. He occupied the post of director of intelligence in replacement of Toufik before resigning on April 2, the same day of former president Bouteflika's resignation.
As for Said Bouteflika, he is considered as the man of shadow in the presidency. Army chief of staff called him "the head of non-constitutional forces" who took advantage of the illness of President Bouteflika to take key decisions that undermined the nation's interests.
Algerians have been protesting since Feb. 22 across the country to demand the departure of the regime.
Meanwhile, the military institution pledged to work for meeting the people's aspirations, as a series of arrests were launched against several prominent state and military officials as well as businessmen, who are prosecuted over corruption and conspiracy charges.
