Ahmed Gaid Salah (; 13 January 1940 – 23 December 2019) was an Algerian military officer and chief of staff of the

Algerian People's National Army The People's National Army (PNA) () is the military of the Algerian republic. It is the direct successor of the National Liberation Army (ALN), the armed wing of the nationalist National Liberation Front, which fought French colonial rule d ...

from 2004 to 2019. In 2004, he was appointed by then-President

Abdelaziz Bouteflika Abdelaziz Bouteflika (; ; 2 March 1937 – 17 September 2021) was an Algerian politician and diplomat who served as the seventh president of Algeria from 1999 to his resignation in 2019. Before his stint as an Algerian politician, Bouteflika s ...

to the position of

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

of the army. On 15 September 2013, he was appointed Deputy Minister of Defense. Gaid Salah served as Algeria's '' de facto'' leader in 2019.

Biography

On 26 March 2019, after months of unrelenting anti-Bouteflika protests, Gaid Salah compelled President Bouteflika to resign. The president handed over his resignation under intense public pressure after having announced that he was seeking reelection for a fifth term. Later, in an effort to ease public tension, General Gaid Salah ordered the arrest of the president's brother and close adviser, Said Bouteflika, alleging that he was conspiring with two former intelligence chiefs, retired General Toufik Mediene and General Tartag, to make changes in the leadership of the armed forces, including the removal of Gaid Salah himself from his top position. In an effort to remove opposition, General Gaid Salah ordered the arrest of two former prime ministers as well as other former ministers and several business leaders who were close to presidential advisor Said Bouteflika. His actions at that point gained him a lot of public support. The anti-corruption activity that started in the second quarter of 2019 was used by the Algerian anti-government movement as an opportunity to demand that the military hand over power to a civilian government, a demand that was rejected by General Gaid Salah. Instead, General Gaid Salah said that only a presidential election could bring the country out of its political crisis.

Death

Gaid Salah suffered a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

on the morning of 23 December 2019 and was rushed to a military hospital in Algiers, where he died a few hours later. He was 79 years old. His last public appearance was four days earlier when he received the National Order of Merit from President

Abdelmadjid Tebboune Abdelmadjid Tebboune (; born 17 November 1945) is an Algerian politician currently serving as the president of Algeria since December 2019 and as minister of defence. Tebboune took over the power from former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika and f ...

. After his funeral, he was buried on 25 December 2019 at El-Alia cemetery,

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

Honours

* Collar of the

National Order of Merit (Algeria) The National Order of Merit () is an order of merit awarded for all manner of services to Algeria. It was instituted 2 January 1984 and is quite complex, with three classes of 'Dignity' (each with collar, sash with badge and star), as well as Com ...

* Medal of the Order of Military Merit (Algeria) * Medal of Bravery (Algeria) * Medal of Courage (Algeria) * Medal of Honour (Algeria) * Medal of Longevity and Exemplary Service (Algeria) * Medal for participation in the Middle East Wars 1967 and 1973 (Algeria) * Commander of the Order of the Republic of Tunisia

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:GAID Salah, Ahmed 1940 births 2019 deaths People from Batna, Algeria Algerian generals Members of the National Liberation Front (Algeria) Chaoui people 21st-century Algerian politicians Chiefs of defence Lieutenant generals 21st-century military personnel