"Dinosaur in Algeria" causes a stir... and a specialist explains the truth about the bones

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Economist and former presidential election candidate in Algeria, Fares Masdour, caused a stir after speaking a few days ago about the discovery of a huge dinosaur in the east of the country. Masdour said that the discovery occurred in the Bir El Ater area in the state of Tebessa, about 650 kilometers east of the Algerian capital. He confirmed that he visited the site himself and saw the landmark that had become a shrine, which sparked a wide wave of controversy among Algerians on social media.

In an interview with Al-Arabiya.net/Al-Hadath.net, Masdour stuck to his story, saying: “I think that many people are ignorant of the historical and esoteric riches that Algeria abounds with.” He added that several regions of the country, including the south, contain secrets, some of which have been discovered, while others are still unknown, considering that their existence "does not cause surprise."

He also pointed out that the area not only contains what he described as the remains of dinosaur bones, but also contains fossils of fish and other creatures, reflecting the depth of its history.

For his part, the researcher specializing in excavations, Safwan Izri, explained that the Wadi al-Jabbana site in Bir al-Ater preserves evidence of an important chapter in human history, dating back to between 145 thousand and 45 thousand years ago. Isri, a member of an association for fossil research in eastern Algeria, told Al Arabiya.net that the research and excavations led by joint scientific teams made it possible to study thousands of artifacts and fossils, which confirm that the region was the cradle of the Atrian civilization that marked the Middle Stone Age in North Africa.

He also pointed out that the examination of animal fossils showed that Al-Ater Well was a humid environment, rich in water and pastures, explaining that the site includes the skeletal remains of huge and extinct animals, including rhinos, primitive horses, and huge buffalo, in addition to river and terrestrial creatures.

In addition, he explained that the story of the dinosaur began when a resident of the region found huge parts of a spine and a giant skeleton, which were initially believed to belong to a dinosaur, without scientific proof confirming this. He pointed out that the Directorate of Culture sent a committee of specialized experts, in coordination with researchers, to examine the bones and subject them to anthropological analysis.

He concluded by explaining that the results of successive excavations at the Wadi Al-Jabbana site indicate that the large bones discovered belong to huge mammals and extinct vertebrate animals that lived during the Quaternary period, such as primitive elephants, rhinos, and ancient horses, and not to a dinosaur as has been reported.