Reports: Algeria leader prepares to return home from Geneva

ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) " A convoy escorted by police arrived Sunday at Geneva's airport amid reports Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika was preparing to return home after two weeks in a Swiss hospital and as massive protests for regime change have gripped the country.

A government plane used to take the 82-year-old president, who suffered a stroke in 2013, had reportedly returned to Geneva earlier Sunday.

An AP reporter spotted the arrival of the convoy of four black limousines, two black mini-vans and a police escort at the airport, though the plane has remained out of view.

Algerian officials had said days ago that Bouteflika was expected to return shortly.

The top Algerian party backing the beleaguered chief of state broke its silence Sunday over massive demonstrations demanding the end of the regime, saying it's ready to work with all parties to end the crisis.

The National Liberation Front, or FLN, said in a statement that it wants to find a way out of the crisis "with the least cost to the country."

Army Chief of Staff Ahmed Gaid Salah added his voice, saying Sunday that the army and the people "have the same vision of the future."

Peaceful nationwide protests began Feb. 22 to protest Bouteflika's plan to run for a fifth term in April 18 elections. He has been in office two decades. The protest movement also wants a change in the much-decried system that has kept him there and has a strangle-hold on the power structure.