Algerian president back in Algiers after Paris hospital stay

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika arrived at Boufarik military airport on Tuesday evening, following an 88-day medical stay in France. The president was received by Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal, who cancelled his short his field trip to the north central city of Tizi-Ouzou, and several senior government members at the army base in the northern province of Blida.
Political sources said that the Algerian president was on a wheelchair during the flight.
The Algerian regime chose the military airport as Bouteflika's point of arrival due to its proximity to the army's main medical centre.
The president spent nearly three months in France after suffering a mini-stroke in April. He was initially admitted to Val de Grace military hospital in Paris, before being transferred to the National Residence of Invalids, a complex built for war veterans that includes a hospital.
Bouteflika was expected to return to Algiers last Tuesday, but his return was delayed by one week.
Algerians have largely been kept in the dark about the president's condition, with French newspaper Le Figaro quoting a French ?doctor as saying that Bouteflika's health condition is much ?better than many people think.?
On June 12, the Algerian president appeared on state television with his prime minister to respond to the rumours about his health. Bouteflika's third presidential term will end in 2014, and several opposition political groups have urged the 76-year-old to step down, raising scepticism about his ability to lead the country.