Algeria sentences Lebanese-born 'Israeli spy gang leader' to death

An Algerian court has sentenced a Lebanese-born Liberian man to death and six other African nationals to 10 years in prison for spying for Israel, the state-run Algeria Press Service  reported.

A criminal court in the southern city of Ghardaia handed down the sentences for espionage, APS reported on Tuesday.

"The main suspect 'A.D.F' a Liberian of Lebanese origins was convicted of spying for a foreign power (Israel) and forming a criminal group that seeks to harm and threaten state security," the report said.

"The six others from various sub-Saharan countries were sentenced to 10 years in prison on the same charges and fined 1 million Algerian dinars ($8,700)," it added.

A judicial source told Turkish Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that police arrested the group in 2015 and found in their possession "documents and communications equipment related to espionage for Israel."

The unnamed source said some of the convicted men were nationals of Guinea and Mali.

In January, Algeria said it had uncovered an Israeli spy ring operating in the south of the country and arrested ten people.

Authorities said at the time the arrested were from various individuals African countries, including Libya, Mali, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Kenya and Liberia.

Algeria, like most Arab countries, has no diplomatic relations with Israel.