Forty-nine people have been sentenced to death in Algeria over the lynching of a man who was falsely accused of starting deadly fires last year.
In 2021, the nation suffered the worst blazes in its history, with up to 90 people perishing in multiple fires, the BBC reported.
Djamel Ben Ismail - the victim of the deadly lynching - had gone as a volunteer to help fight the fires. At the time, the 38-year-old tweeted that he would be traveling over 200 miles from his home to "give a hand to our friends" and help with the blazes.
Soon afterward, however, he began hearing that he was suspected of arson and headed to a police station in the town of Larbaa Nath Irathen in Northern Algeria to explain that he was just a volunteer. Onlookers then accused Ismail of starting the fires, beating him to death before burning his body and taking it to the village square, France 24 detailed.
On August 11, 2021, disturbing footage of the violent attack emerged, causing outrage throughout the nation. Ismail's brother pleaded for the video - and numerous selfies people took with Ismail's charred remains - to be deleted from social media. His father Noureddine Ben Ismail received praise across the country after he called for calm and "brotherhood."
In the immediate aftermath of the senseless killing, police arrested 36 people, including one man who attacked Ismail's body with a knife, per VICE. Mohamed Chagor, a police official in the town, had described the mob as being in "collective hysteria" as they dragged Ismail out of the station where he was being protected, and carried out their brutal attack.
The police, however, have been widely condemned for their failure to intervene during the assault, especially given that it occurred right outside to the town's police station. Chagor stated that the police had decided not to fire warning shots for fear of making the situation worse.
"A preliminary enquiry … into the homicide, lynching, immolation and mutilation. .. of Djamel Ben Ismail … led to the arrest of 36 suspects including three women," he told reporters, via The Arab Weekly.
A funeral for Ismail - who was a talented artist - was held in his hometown of Khemis Miliana, where a stunning mural of him was painted in his memory. Hundreds of people were in attendance.
The sentences of those involved are expected to be reduced to life sentences, given that Algeria has a long-standing moratorium on the death penalty. The country has not sentenced anyone to death since at least 1993.
State news agency, APS, revealed that around 28 others involved in Ismail's death have been sentenced to between two and 10 years in prison, and have received fines of between $700 to $1,400.
