The Escape of Nasser el Djinn: The Former Algerian General Challenging the Regime from Spain
On a September night, a speedboat cut across the Mediterranean. On board were not anonymous migrants but one of Algeria’s most powerful and feared men: General Abdelkader Haddad, nicknamed “Nasser el Djinn,” former head of internal security. His destination: the coast of Alicante, Spain. More than just an escape, his flight marks a political earthquake that exposes the deep cracks within the Algerian regime.
The operation, worthy of a spy thriller, unfolded between September 18 and 19. In Algiers, the news triggered panic: the capital awoke under a security lockdown unseen since the “dark years” of terrorism. Helicopters, military checkpoints, and a paralyzed city reflected the anxiety of the leadership. The man who held the state’s darkest secrets had vanished.
The downfall of General Haddad dates back to May, when he was placed under house arrest after falling from grace. Aware that his future meant either prison or elimination, he reportedly chose exile to save his life. Upon arriving in Spain, he declared he feared “being assassinated before appearing before a judge” and that his death would have been staged as a suicide. According to Algerian journalists, his downfall came after he launched investigations into a corruption network involving President Abdelmadjid Tebboune’s inner circle. Nasser el Djinn had flown too close to the sun.
His choice of Spain was no accident. The Levantine coast, particularly Alicante, has become over the years a refuge for Algeria’s disgraced elite. Haddad had already lived in exile there between 2015 and 2020, during another purge. Like other generals and officials, he invested and built ties in the region — close enough to maintain influence, safe enough to hide when power shifted.
Yet behind the dramatic escape of one man lies the exposure of an entire system in crisis. Since the 2015 dismantling of the powerful Department of Intelligence and Security (DRS), the fragile balance between the presidency, the army, and the intelligence services has collapsed. The Algerian regime has sunk into chronic instability, marked by violent, cyclical clan rivalries.
The figures reveal the depth of this internal war: nearly 200 senior officers, including around thirty generals, are reportedly imprisoned today. Purges follow one another in rhythm with power struggles, while rehabilitations remain temporary. Haddad’s own successor had spent years in jail before being reinstated. In this self-consuming system, loyalty and betrayal are mere tools of survival.
In the face of this scandal, Algeria’s official media remain silent, fueling speculation and rumors. Some suggest high-level complicity facilitated the escape, highlighting the fragility of President Tebboune’s authority. Now based in Europe, “Nasser el Djinn” may pose an even greater threat than he did in Algeria: his testimony, if revealed, has the potential to shake the foundations of an already weakened regime, ushering in a new phase of uncertainty and tension for Algeria’s ruling elite.