Algeria hits record temperatures in 2024 as global warming breaches 1.5C

European Union data shows that 2024 was the hottest year on record, with annual global temperatures breaching the internationally agreed 1.5C target for the first time. Across North Africa temperatures soared, with Algeria hitting 51 degrees, recording the highest "feels like" temperature of 59.1 degrees. Successions of severe heatwaves have left Algeria one of the most water-stressed countries in the world, with less than 300 cubic metres of water per person per year as of 2019. In 2024, the country’s southwest was hit by protests over water rationing, which was implemented to address historic water shortages that had left taps running dry and dams operating at a third of their capacity.