Lounès Matoub

Lounès Matoub (Kabyle: Lwennas Meɛṭub; Berber languages: ⵍⵡⴻⵏⵏⴰⵙ ⵎⴻⵄⵜⵓⴱ or ⵎⴻⵄⵜⵓⴱ}} or ⵎⵄⵟⵓⴱ ⵍⵓⵏⵉⵙ; Arabic: معطوب لونّاس‎ (January 24, 1956 – June 25, 1998)) was a famous Berber singer, poet, thinker and mandole player who was a prominent advocate of the Berber cause, human rights and secularism in Algeria throughout his life. Matoub was reviled by most of the Muslim population in Algeria for his Laïc political and atheist views and the alleged blasphemy of some songs (like Allahu Akbar) along with his militant advocacy of Berber rights, so he was unpopular among both warring parties during the Algerian Civil War. His assassination, in circumstances which remain unclear, provoked violent riots in Kabylie. Berber Algerians still accuse the Algerian government of killing Matoub Lounès, but some of the Algerian government's figures accused the Islamist terrorists of this crime.