Tragedy in Oran Exposes the Falsehood of Official Denials

Aldar / Analysis

While the official discourse in Algeria confidently claimed the “non-existence of slums,” the tragedy in Oran has painfully exposed the falsity of these assertions. The city witnessed the collapse of part of a hillside onto several informal houses, resulting in multiple deaths and injuries. May God have mercy on them all.

The tragic events occurred just days after Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune publicly denied the existence of slum areas in the country, while simultaneously attacking Morocco with false allegations about its inability to eradicate informal housing. However, the harsh reality witnessed in Oran revealed the fragility of such rhetoric and highlighted the persistent challenges facing many Algerian cities in terms of housing and urban planning.

This tragedy makes it clear that the suffering in some neighborhoods can no longer be concealed, and that the urgent need to provide decent housing for citizens has become a priority that can no longer be ignored or masked by media narratives.

As public anger grows, attention is now focused on how the authorities will respond to this disaster, and whether they will take real, practical steps to address the crisis instead of continuing to deny the reality on the ground.