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Tag Archives: Algeria
Saudi Arabia: Crown prince to skip summit on doctor advice
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi Arabia’s powerful 37-year-old crown prince will not attend an upcoming summit in Algeria after his doctors advised him not to travel, the royal court said Sunday.
The acknowledgement from the state-run Saudi Press Agency came hours after Algeria’s presidency said Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will not be attending because of health reasons, spurring speculation about his condition.
Royal doctors advised Prince Mohammed not to fly long distances to avoid the “trauma’” on his middle ear, the statement said, without elaborating. The nature of Prince Mohammed’s condition remained unclear, but ruptured eardrums can result from middle ear infections and trauma such as excessive pressure from flying long distances.
Prince Mohammed has quickly risen to power under his 86-year-old father King Salman. Much of the focus on the Al Saud royal family in recent years has been on King Salman’s health, with analysts suggesting Prince Mohammed could rule the OPEC-leading nation for decades after ascending to the throne.
Early Sunday, news broke on the the Algeria Press Service that Prince Mohammed was skipping the summit for unexplained health reasons. The statements in Arabic and French on referred to a statement from the office of President Abdelmadjid Tebboune about a telephone call between him and Prince Mohammed.
In the call, Prince Mohammed “apologized for not being able to participate in the Arab Summit to be held on Nov. 1 in Algiers, in accordance with the recommendations of doctors who advise him not to travel,” the statement read.
“For his part, Mr. President said he understood the situation and regretted the impediment of the Crown Prince, His Highness the Emir Mohammed Bin Salman, expressing his wishes for his health and well-being.”
The state-run Saudi Press Agency reported the call between Tebboune and the prince earlier Sunday but omitted discussion of the prince’s health. It just said the call focused on “the aspects of bilateral relations between the two fraternal countries” and possible joint cooperation.
The Arab League Summit in Algeria represents the first time the regional body has met since the coronavirus pandemic took hold across the world.
The Arab League, founded in 1945, represents 22 nations across the Mideast and North Africa, though Syria has been suspended amid its long-running war. While unified in the call for the Palestinians to have an independent state, the body has otherwise been largely fractious and unable to enforce its mandates.
Prince Mohammed came to power in 2015 as a deputy crown prince, then quickly became crown prince some two years later after King Salman removed Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, a once-powerful figure as head of Saudi counterterrorism efforts and a close American ally.
His rise to power, however, has seen the kingdom undergo rapid changes, like allowing women to drive and opening movie theaters while loosening the grip of ultraconservatives in the kingdom. However, the prince also engaged in a corruption crackdown that turned a luxury hotel in Riyadh into a prison for powerbrokers in the kingdom who could have challenged his rule. He’s also led an internationally criticized Saudi military campaign in a ruinous war in Yemen that rages even today in the Arab world’s poorest country.
U.S. intelligence services have linked Prince Mohammed to the 2018 killing and dismemberment of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, a critic of his rule. The kingdom has denied the prince was involved, though its prosecution of the government squad behind Khashoggi’s slaying has been held behind closed doors.
Recently, the prince has come under intense American criticism over Saudi Arabia leading OPEC and allied nations to agree to an oil production cut of 2 million barrels per day.
The Future Investment Initiative, the crown prince’s annual summit drawing global investors to the kingdom, begins Tuesday amid that U.S. pressure. Prince Mohammed has attended sessions in previous years.
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Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.
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Associated Press writer Isabel DeBre in Jerusalem contributed to this report.
Algeria suspends Spain treaty, bars imports over Western Sahara
Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, speaks during the start of a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (not pictured), at El Mouradia Palace, the President’s official residence in Algiers, Algeria March 30, 2022. Jacquelyn Martin/Pool via REUTERS
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ALGIERS/MADRID, June 8 (Reuters) – Algeria suspended a 20-year-old friendship treaty with Spain that committed the two sides to cooperation in controlling migration flows, and also banned imports from Spain, escalating a row over Madrid’s stance on Western Sahara.
Algerian state media reported the suspension of the treaty without citing any reason, though Algeria had in March withdrawn its ambassador to Spain for consultations because of the Western Sahara dispute. read more
Spanish diplomatic sources said Spain regretted the decision but remained committed to the content and principle of the treaty.
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Separately, Algeria’s banking association issued a statement telling banks that imports of goods and services from Spain were stopping because the treaty was suspended.
The 2002 treaty called on both sides to “deepen their cooperation in the control of migratory flows and the fight against trafficking against human beings” according to the text recorded in Spain’s official journal.
On Wednesday, 113 undocumented migrants arrived in Spain’s Balearic islands, a route that Spanish authorities said tended to be used by boats coming from Algeria.
Migrant flows have sharply increased across the Mediterranean this year as the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has hit the global economy.
Algeria was angered when Spain said in March it supported a Moroccan plan to offer autonomy to Western Sahara. Algeria backs the Polisario Front movement seeking full independence for the territory, which Morocco regards as its own and mostly controls. read more
A former Algerian official told Reuters that Algiers believed the Spanish government had decided not to preserve good ties with Algeria.
Algeria is a key gas supplier to Spain, but Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has previously said he would not break the supply contract over the row.
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said there was no indication that had changed and Spanish Energy Minister Teresa Ribera said Algeria’s gas supply conduct had been exemplary.
Algeria is expected to review prices for any new gas contract with Spanish firms, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. The current contract is long-term with prices well under the current market level, the same source, who asked not to be identified, said.
Since the Western Sahara conflict flared again in 2020, nearly three decades after a ceasefire, relations between Algeria and Morocco have sharply deteriorated. read more
Spain’s shift towards Morocco’s stance on Western Sahara ended a dispute between Madrid and Rabat last year involving both the disputed territory and migration. read more
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Reporting by Enas Alashray and Lamine Chikhi; editing by Angus McDowall and Richard Pullin
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Italy’s Mario Draghi to visit Algeria as country aims to wean itself off Russian natural gas
American Petroleum Institute CEO Mike Sommers argues Democratic politicians are continuing to ‘browbeat’ U.S. oil companies.
Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi is expected to visit Algeria Monday as part of a plan for his country to wean itself off Russian natural gas.
Italy, like other European nations, has been desperately looking for alternatives to natural gas from Russia since its invasion of Ukraine. Around 40% of total imports come from Russia.
Italy’s Prime Minister Mario Draghi listens reporters’ questions during a joint press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, at Rome’s Palazzo Chigi government’s office, Thursday April 7, 2022. | AP Newsroom
Algeria is Italy’s second-largest supplier of natural gas, which is the main source of the nation’s electricity, providing some 21 billion cubic meters of gas via the Trans-Mediterranean pipeline.
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Italian energy company ENI has operated in Algeria for nearly 40 years. Last month, the company announced a significant oil and gas discovery in Algeria and said it would work with Algerian partner Sonatrach to fast-track its development for the third quarter of this year.
Draghi’s is expected to travel to Algeria with a delegation, including the head of Italian group Eni ENI.MI, energy transition minister Robert Cingolani, and Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio, a government source told Reuters.
In addition to Algeria, Italy’s foreign minister has traveled to Azerbaijan, Qatar, Congo, Angola and Mozambique to secure more deals.
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Algerian exports have been hampered by rising domestic consumption, lack of investment and political instability, and the closure of a pipeline to Spain over a dispute with Morocco.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
France to open classified Algerian war archives | News
Files cover judicial proceedings by the French police and military forces during the 1954-1962 war of independence.
The French government has said it will soon open to the public the most highly classified parts of its national archives about the Algerian war of independence, shedding light on some of the darkest chapters in France’s 20th century history.
Between 1954 and 1962, France waged a war against an independence movement in its then colony. Hundreds of thousands of Algerians were killed, and French forces and their proxies used torture against opponents, according to historians.
The fighting in Algeria convulsed France and prompted a failed coup attempt against then-President Charles de Gaulle to stop him from ending French rule. Almost 60 years after it ended, the conflict is still a highly sensitive and divisive topic in France.
“We need to have the courage to look the historical truth in the face,” French Culture Minister Roselyne Bachelot said on Friday as she made the announcement about opening up the archives.
The declassification is an important step towards a better understanding of the war, as well as possibly making sense of certain deaths that to this day remain unexplained, according to Benjamin Stora, a leading French historian of Algeria.
“You can know which people were under surveillance, followed, arrested,” Stora told Reuters news agency. “It’s the whole chain leading up to repressive measures that can be unveiled.”
Algeria lived under French rule for 132 years until it won the independence war in 1962.
“We have things to rebuild with Algeria. They can only be rebuilt on the truth,” Bachelot told BFMTV.
“I want this question – which is troubling, aggravating, and where falsifiers of history are at work – I want us to be able to look it in the eyes. We can’t build a national story on a lie”.
Asked about the likelihood that incidents of torture will be uncovered in the archives, Bachelot said: “It is in the interest of the country that they are recognised.
“We should never fear the truth. We must put it in context.”
The announcement took place two days after a trip to Algiers by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. He held talks with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune aimed at reviving dialogue between the two sides.
Ties deteriorated sharply in October after French President Emmanel Macron accused Algeria’s “political-military system” of rewriting history and fomenting “hatred towards France”. In remarks to descendants of independence fighters, reported by Le Monde, Macron also questioned whether Algeria had existed as a nation before the French invasion in the 1800s.
The comments, which came a month after Paris decided to sharply reduce visa quotas for citizens of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, sparked a fierce reaction from Algeria, which withdrew its ambassador and banned French military planes from its airspace.
Tebboune also boycotted a major November summit in Paris on Algeria’s war-torn neighbour Libya, saying his country would “not take the first step” to repair ties.
Moroccan king ignores Algeria accusation in speech
Morocco’s King Mohammed VI arrives for a lunch at the Elysee Palace as part of the One Planet Summit in Paris, France, December 12, 2017. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer
RABAT, Nov 6 (Reuters) – Morocco’s King Mohammed gave a speech about Western Sahara on Saturday but made no mention of an Algerian accusation that Morocco targeted Algerian civilians in an incident last week that the United Nations said took place in the disputed territory.
Algeria’s accusation has raised fears of further escalation between the North African rivals after Algeria cut off diplomatic relations, stopped supplying gas to Morocco and blocked Algerian airspace to Moroccan flights.
Ties between the countries have been fractious for years, but have deteriorated since last year after the Algeria-backed Polisario Front said it was resuming its armed struggle for the independence of Western Sahara, a territory Morocco sees as its own.
King Mohammed’s silence on the dispute with Algeria in his annual speech on Western Sahara is in line with Morocco’s practice since soon after Algeria broke off ties in August in ignoring all statements coming from Algiers.
However, Algeria’s accusation on Wednesday that Morocco had killed three civilians driving in the Sahara on Monday has sharply raised the stakes.
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune vowed in a statement that the death of the three men “would not go unpunished”.
Morocco has not formally responded to the accusation.
The U.N. peacekeeping force in Western Sahara, MINURSO, visited the site of the incident in territory outside Moroccan control and found two badly damaged Algerian-plated trucks, a U.N. spokesperson said on Friday. The spokesperson said MINURSO was looking into the incident.
Last year the United States recognised Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara as part of a deal that also included Rabat bolstering ties with Israel.
Morocco has been more assertive since then in pushing European countries to follow suit. However, they have not done so and in September a European Union court said some European trade deals with Morocco were invalid because they included products originating in Western Sahara territory.
King Mohammed said on Saturday that Morocco would not agree “any economic or commercial step that excludes the Moroccan Sahara”.
Reporting by Ahmed Eljechtimi, writing by Angus McDowall
Editing by Alistair Bell
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Algeria recalls ambassador to France as diplomatic row mounts | Algeria
Algeria has recalled its ambassador to France for consultations as diplomatic tensions mount over comments by Emmanuel Macron that the former French colony was ruled by a “political-military system”.
“Algeria recalls its ambassador [Mohamed Antar-Daoud] from Paris for consultations,” state television said, quoting a statement from the presidency.
It said a longer statement would follow to explain the move.
Le Monde on Saturday quoted the French president as saying Algeria has an “official history” that has been “totally rewritten”.
He said this history was “not based on truths” but “on a discourse of hatred towards France”, according to Le Monde.
“Was there an Algeria nation before French colonisation,” Macron reportedly asked.
Macron also spoke out on current Algerian politics. His counterpart, Abdelmajid Tebboune, was “trapped in a system which is very tough”, the French president was quoted as saying.
“You can see that the Algerian system is tired, it has been weakened by the Hirak,” he added, referring to the pro-democracy movement that forced Tebboune’s predecessor Abdelaziz Bouteflika from power in 2019 after two decades at the helm.
The remarks, widely picked up by Algerian media, came in a meeting earlier this week between Macron and relatives of figures from Algeria’s war of independence.
It is the second time that Algeria has recalled an ambassador from France.
Algiers also recalled its ambassador in May 2020 after French media broadcast a documentary about the Hirak.
Saturday’s move comes amid tension over a French decision to sharply reduce the number of visas it grants to citizens of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia.
France said the decision, which it announced on Tuesday, had been made necessary by the former colonies’ failure to do enough to allow illegal migrants to return.
The Algerian foreign ministry summoned the French ambassador, François Gouyette, on Wednesday and handed him a “formal protest” note concerning the visa ruling.
It called the visa reduction an “unfortunate act” that caused “confusion and ambiguity as to its motivation and its scope”.
Morocco’s foreign minister, Nasser Bourita, has described the French move as “unjustified”.
The Tunisian president, Kais Saied, expressed disappointment with the decision in a telephone call with Macron Saturday, his office said, adding that the French leader had said it could be revised.
French government spokesman Gabriel Attal told Europe 1 radio on Tuesday that the visa reduction decision was “unprecedented”.
Paris made that choice, he said, because Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia “are refusing to take back nationals who we do not want or cannot keep in France”.
The radio said Macron took the decision a month ago after failed diplomatic efforts with the three North African countries.
Algeria closes airspace to Moroccan aviation as dispute deepens
Algerian upper house chairman Abdelkader Bensalah is pictured after being appointed as interim president by Algeria’s parliament, following the resignation of Abdelaziz Bouteflika in Algiers, Algeria April 9, 2019. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina/File Photo
ALGIERS/CAIRO, Sept 22 (Reuters) – Algeria’s supreme security council decided on Wednesday to close the country’s airspace to all Moroccan civil and military aircraft, the Algerian presidency said, less than a month after it cut diplomatic relations with the Kingdom.
The decision came “in view of the continued provocations and hostile practices on the Moroccan side”, it said in a statement.
The closure also includes any aircraft carrying a Moroccan registration number, the presidency said after a meeting of the council.
There was no immediate Moroccan official response. A source at Royal Air Maroc said the closure would only affect 15 flights weekly linking Morocco with Tunisia, Turkey and Egypt.
The source described the closure as insignificant and said the relevant flights could reroute over the Mediterranean.
The airline gave no official comment on the Algerian decision.
Algeria late last month decided to cut diplomatic ties with Morocco, citing “hostile actions” from the Kingdom, referring mainly to comments made by Morocco’s envoy in New York in favor of the self-determination of the Kabylie region in Algeria.
Algiers also accused Rabat of backing MAK, a separatist group that the government has declared a terrorist organisation. Authorities blame the group for devastating wildfires, mainly in Kabylie, that killed at least 65 people. MAK has denied the accusations.
Morocco said in response that Algeria was unjustified in cutting ties and its arguments were “fallacious and even absurd.”
The border between Morocco and Algeria has been closed since 1994 and Algeria has indicated it will divert gas exports from a pipeline running through Morocco, which was due to be renewed later this year.
Relations have deteriorated since last year, when the Western Sahara issue flared up after years of comparative quiet. Morocco sees Western Sahara as its own, but the territory’s sovereignty has been disputed by the Polisario Front, an Algeria-backed independence movement.
Reporting by Hamid Ould Ahmed in Algiers and Ahmad Elhamy in Cairo, additional reporting by Ahmed El Jechtimi in Rabat; editing by Sonya Hepinstall and Richard Pullin
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Algeria cuts ties with Morocco over ‘hostile actions,’ Lapid’s comments
Algeria is cutting diplomatic relations with Morocco, Foreign Minister Ramdane Lamamra said on Tuesday at a news conference, accusing its neighbor of “hostile actions,” including – according to Israeli media – the visit of Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid to Morocco, where he made statements against Algeria.
Morocco and Algeria have had strained relations for decades, mainly over the issue of Western Sahara, and the border between the two countries has been closed since 1994.
“The Moroccan kingdom has never stopped its hostile actions against Algeria,” he said.
Morocco’s Foreign Ministry could not be immediately reached for comment. King Mohammed VI has called for improved ties with Algeria.
The cutting of diplomatic relations is effective from Tuesday but consulates in each country will remain open, Lamamra said.
Algeria last week said lethal wildfires were the work of groups it has labeled terrorist, one of which it said was backed by Morocco.
Lamamra cited what he called Moroccan support for one of those groups, which seeks autonomy in Algeria’s Kabylie region, and said Rabat had spied on Algerian officials and failed to meet bilateral obligations including over Western Sahara.
Indigenous Sahrawi people react during the funeral of Western Sahara’s Polisario Front leader Mohamed Abdelaziz in Tindouf, Algeria June 3, 2016 (credit: REUTERS/RAMZI BOUDINA)
Algeria backs the Polisario movement that seeks independence for Western Sahara, which Morocco regards as part of its own territory.
However, the matter of Israel is also something Lamamra specified at the press conference. He explained that Morroco’s foreign minister was the true mastermind behind Lapid’s comments, and claimed that this was effectively “sending an aggressive message from one Arab country to another,” according to Ynet.
The specific comments made by Lapid during his visit to Rabat to inaugurate Israel’s diplomatic mission were referring to fears about Algeria’s ties with Iran and support for Hamas. KAN reported.
Lamamra further accused Morocco of utilizing the Pegasus spyware developed by Israel’s NSO Group to spy on Algerian citizens and politicians, Ynet reported.
Algeria also helped lead a push against Israel regaining its observer status in the African Union, even forming a bloc that, according to the London-based New Arab outlet, included South Africa, Tunisia, Nigeria, Liberia and the Seychelles, among others.Morocco’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement published on social media that it regretted what it called an unjustified decision and said it would remain a “credible and loyal partner” to the Algerian people.
Algeria cuts diplomatic relations with Morocco
ALGIERS, Aug 24 (Reuters) – Algeria cut diplomatic relations with Morocco on Tuesday, citing what it called “hostile actions” by its most populous neighbour with which it has had strained relations for decades.
Speaking at a news conference in Algiers, Foreign Minister Ramdane Lamamra accused Morocco of using Pegasus spyware against its officials, supporting a separatist group and failing in “bilateral commitments”, including on the Western Sahara issue.
“The Moroccan kingdom has never stopped its hostile actions against Algeria,” he said, announcing the immediate cessation of ties. Consulates in each country, however, will stay open, he said.
Morocco’s Foreign Ministry was not immediately available for comment but King Mohammed has called in public for improved relations with Algeria, including in a speech last month.
While the border between the two North African powers had been closed since 1994, they have had diplomatic relations since 1988 when they were restored following an earlier dispute.
Morocco has said for years it wants the border to reopen. Algeria has said it must stay shut for security reasons.
Last week Algeria said lethal wildfires were the work of two groups it has labelled terrorists, including the MAK group which seeks independence for the Kabylie region and which Algeria said was backed by Morocco, without presenting evidence.
Last month Algeria recalled its ambassador after a Moroccan diplomat in New York called for the Kabylie people to have the right of self determination.
Morocco offered to send help to combat the fires, but there was no public response from Algeria.
Relations have deteriorated since last year, when the Western Sahara issue flared up after years of comparative quiet. Morocco regards the disputed territory as its own. Algeria backs the Polisario independence movement.
The Polisario said in November it was resuming its armed struggle. In December, the United States recognised Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara in return for Rabat upgrading its relations with Israel.
Morocco has called Algeria “the real party” to the Western Sahara dispute.
“Algeria will remain firm in its positions on the issue of Western Sahara,” Lamamra said.
He also accused Morocco of using Pegasus spyware for espionage against “several” Algerian officials. Morocco has denied possessing the software.
Reporting by Hamid Ould Ahmed, additional reporting by Ahmed El Jechtimi, writing by Angus McDowall, editing by Catherine Evans and Mark Heinrich
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.