In an effort to quell surging protests against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s bid to run for a fifth term in office, Algeria’s Higher Education Ministry brought forward on Saturday university holidays.
Without giving a reason for the move, the Ministry said in a decree that the spring break would be brought forward by 10 days, starting on Sunday instead of March 20.
Students have been at the heart of demonstrations since last month against Bouteflika's bid to extend his 20-year rule, with campuses serving as rallying points.
Teachers and students at several universities have gone on strike, while others had pledged to begin striking on Sunday.
The family homes of many students are long distances from university campuses, which will be closed over the holidays.
Algeria has more than 1.7 million students, of whom nearly 630,000 are housed on campuses.
The ailing Bouteflika is in hospital in Geneva and has rarely been seen in public since suffering a stroke in 2013.
On Thursday he issued his first warning to protesters, saying the unrest, now entering its third week, could create chaos in the oil- and natural gas-producing North African country.
Bouteflika has offered to limit his term after the election and has vowed to change the “system” that runs the country, but the protest movement has galvanized discontent among different sectors, particularly students and young families.
On Friday, tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Algerian cities in the biggest demonstrations yet against his rule.
Some long-time allies of Bouteflika, including members of the ruling party, have expressed support for the protesters, revealing cracks within a ruling elite long seen as invincible.
