Religion in Algeria
Religion in Algeria is dominated by Muslims at about ninety-seven percent of the population. The vast majority of Muslims in Algeria adhere to Sunni Islam of Maliki school of jurisprudence. There are also almost 350,000 Christians, mostly Pentecostal Protestants. There are nearly 2,000 Jews still living in Algeria, according to the US department of State.
Ba'ath Party (Iraqi-dominated faction)
The party branch in Algeria, the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party of Algeria ( "Hizb Al-Ba'ath Al-'Arabi Al-Ishtiraki fi Al-Jaza'ir"; French: "Parti Baath arabe socialiste d'Algérie"), is led by Ahmed Choutri (secretary of the Regional Command). The party is banned and Choutri was forced to flee to Iraq during the 1990s because of governmental repression against the Algerian Ba'ath movement. The party sympathises with the Iraqi ba'athist insurgency and supports Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri, leader of the Iraqi branch. Following his return to Algeria in 2003, Choutri wrote "The Baathist Faith of President Saddam".