Algeria’s veteran President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has defied protesters by confirming he will run again – but says he will not serve a full term.
In a letter he said if he won April’s vote he would oversee a national dialogue leading to fresh elections that he would not contest.
His decision to seek a fifth term in office sparked nationwide protests.
Bouteflika, 82, has rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013.
Sunday saw new protests as a midnight deadline loomed for candidates to register. By nightfall young people were again marching in the capital Algiers despite the president’s offer.