TUNIS, Tunisia — Over the past 11 weeks, little has slowed the pace of protests across Algeria, as hundreds of thousands of citizens from all walks of life have taken to the street to voice their rejection of the entrenched cliques and clans that have come to define the Algerian political and business elite for decades.

Events took a dramatic turn on May 4 with the arrest of Said Bouteflika, the brother of ousted President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, long considered to be the de facto ruler of the country, along with former Intelligence Chief Gens. Bachir Athmane Tartag and Mohamed Mediene (better known as Toufik). All three stand accused of “harming the army’s authority and plotting against state authority.”

These latest arrests follow those of five of the country’s leading oligarchs, including Algeria’s richest man, Issad Rebrab, last week, and the dismissal of the CEO of the state energy company, Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour, as the relentless pressure for change from the streets chips away at the traditional power structures, the “pouvoir,” which have overseen the economy as it has mired and stagnated.

For decades, Algeria has relied upon its massive hydrocarbon reserves to power its economy, using its exports to underpin a subsidy program unrivalled within the region. However, with that has come large-scale corruption that has dogged economic growth and restricted access into the workplace for many.