Algerian regime tries to cover up slaughter of Swiss tourist, sparking panic among foreign visitors

The Algerian authorities are struggling to hide their failure to provide a safe and secure environment to their few incoming tourists as a female Swiss tourist was brutally slaughtered lately in the Southeastern Algerian city of Djanet while she was sitting at a café terrace.

The identity of the victim, who was part of a tour group of five Swiss travelers, was not disclosed.  The news of her gruesome murder spread on social media but was disregarded by public media in Algeria, where press freedoms are severely restricted.

Despite the media blackout and heavy-handed muzzling imposed by the Algerian regime, the Swiss government confirmed the slaying of its citizen and evacuated the victim’s companions.

The Swiss tourist killing sparked alarm among international travel agencies and tour operators which have pulled out their clients from the country, cancelled reservations, and stopped selling holidays to Algeria wherein foreigners face high risk of terrorist attacks and kidnappings.

The murder of this European traveler comes as the Algerian authoritarian regime was trying to attract tourists in a bid to reduce oil dependence but tourism cannot thrive in a country reeling under deep socioeconomic and political crises, instability, corruption, and tyranny.