Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika has filed a lawsuit against the Le Monde newspaper, days after the French newspaper published an article claiming that the Algerian president is involved in a financial scandal.

Algerian media sources reported that Bouteflika's lawyer filed the lawsuit after the newspaper, on April 5, published the Algerian president's photo in an article on the so-called "Panama Papers", accusing him of being involved in the Sonatrach Saipem case.

On April 6, Le Monde confirmed that Bouteflika had nothing to do with the financial scandal and made a formal apology to the president and Algeria for the mistake.