ALGIERS: Tens of thousands protested across Algeria on Friday in the biggest rallies yet against ailing President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s bid for a fifth term, despite the defiant leader’s warning of the risk of “chaos”.

A march in the capital Algiers was slowed to a near-crawl by the huge numbers taking part, swelled by women marking International Women’s Day and chanting “No fifth term — hey, Bouteflika!” Waving Algeria’s green-white-and-red flags, men and women converged on the city’s landmark Grand Post Office square after weekly prayers.

The police fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse protesters who tried to force their way through a police cordon that was blocking access to a road leading towards the presidency, a journalist said.

But the overall atmosphere was calm and festive, and numerous people attended with their children.

In the late afternoon in central Algiers the massive crowd protested in the absence of police, who melted away from the area.

Dozens of police vehicles that had been deployed in the morning at the Grand Post Office square were withdrawn, after being swamped by crowds.

Huge crowds — again far surpassing those seen the previous Friday — also protested in the second and third cities of Oran and Constantine, local journalists on the ground said.

A journalist in Oran said the whole city “is out (on the streets)... this has never been seen before”.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2019