Bouteflika returns home after treatment in France

Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who spent 82 days in France for medical treatment, flew back home on Tuesday. Television broadcast footages of the president on a wheel-chair and looking in good condition upon his arrival at the airport. An official statement said the president returned home after medical treatment and recuperation. The president suffered a brain stroke on April 27. He was flown to France on May 12 for treatment. Bouteflika had been initially hospitalised and spent a large part of his time in France in the prestigious Val de Grace military hospital before moving to a convalescent facility. In Paris, media sources confirmed that Bouteflika left on a presidential "medivac" plane from Le Bourget VIP airport in the early afternoon. Diplomats in the French capital declined to comment the Algerian leader's stay in the European nation, saying it was a private, medical matter. But French weekly "Le Point" and other media said that Bouteflika left Paris in a medical plane that arrived in Le Bourget for a short stay and left almost immediately with the Algerian leader on board. Bouteflika was last seen on a video broadcast from his nursing home on June 12. The Algerian government has been very reticent about giving out any information on his health but sought to reassure the public that Bouteflika's vital functions had not been impaired.