Algeria Since 1989: Between Terror and Democracy (Global History of the Present)

Algeria's democratic experiment is seminal in post-Cold War history.  The first Muslim nation to attempt the transition from an authoritarian system to democratic pluralism, this North African country became a test case for reform in Africa, the Arab world and beyond.  Yet when the country looked certain to become the world's first elected Islamic republic, there was a military coup and the democratic process was brought sharply to a halt.  Islamists declared jihad on the state and hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed in the ensuing decade of state repression.