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Morocco World
13 hours ago
- Politics
- Morocco World
Algeria State Media Brands US ‘Terrorist' While Militaries Cooperate Closely
Algeria's El Chourouk newspaper has launched a blistering attack on the US, labeling America as a 'terrorist entity.' This incendiary rhetoric comes despite Algiers' deepening military cooperation with Washington. The lengthy editorial, published following recent US airstrikes on Iran, accuses Washington of serial violations of international law. It condemns America's 'imperialist arrogance' concerning Iraq and Iran while attacking the UN Security Council as a tool of Western powers. This narrative, unfolding within the opaque and highly politicized security apparatus of the Islamic Republic, shows Algeria's deepening alignment with Tehran's regional axis, a reality it seeks to obscure through diversionary attacks on the US. The piece particularly spoke about US support for Israel, framing it as evidence of America's 'Zionist-terrorist' alliance. Yet, this vitriolic condemnation stands in stark contrast to recent actions by Algeria's own government. Just months before the article's publication, Algerian Ambassador to Washington Sabri Boukadoum told US media that security cooperation between the two countries had 'no limits,' enthusiastically stating: 'The sky is the limit for our partnership.' Algerian political analyst Oualid Kebir has sharply criticized this flagrant contradiction, calling Algeria 'the largest rogue state in contemporary history,' in a post on X. 'This is textbook hypocrisy,' Kebir added. 'When you call your military partner a 'terrorist entity' while conducting joint exercises and sharing intelligence, you completely undermine your credibility on the international stage.' While Algeria's state media hysterically denounces the US as a 'terrorist state,' its regime shamelessly bankrolls and arms the Polisario Front, the separatist group in Western Sahara that has been repeatedly drawn alarm on the international stage for its acts of terrorism. This glaring hypocrisy shows Algiers' true agenda which is to destabilize North Africa through proxy militias while posing as an anti-imperialist champion. Even as Algeria lectures about 'international law,' it violates every principle by sheltering the Polisario, which embezzles vital humanitarian aid to the Tindouf camp refugees to maintain its anti-Morocco agenda. Tags: AlgeriatebbouneterrorismUS
Morocco World
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
Algeria Keeps Arming Polisario Despite Calls to Label Group as Terrorists
Rabat – Algeria continues to supply the Polisario Front with military equipment, including drones, amid international appeals calling to designate the separatist group as a terrorist militia. Oualid Kebir, an Algerian political analyst, recently said that the Algerian regime delivered four Fajr-54 combat drones to the Polisario. Kebir announced the news on X last week, where he detailed that training sessions also took place at the Boulaadham Air Base in the third military region near Bechar and Tindouf. Notably, Kebir recalled that despite Algeria's socio-economic crisis and social unrest, the regime continues to support the Polisario Front and its maneuvers targeting Morocco's territorial integrity. 'But the scandal goes deeper than just arming an armed group. These drones… are Chinese-made UAVs that were previously assembled under a murky Algerian-Emirati partnership- a project that ended in disgrace,' Kebir said. He said that the fallout led to the arrest of General Abdelhamid Ghriss, the former Secretary General of the Algerian Ministry of Defense. '[The Algerian army official] is now imprisoned on serious corruption charges about this drone program,' Kebir said. 'These drones, which are linked to a corruption case, are now in the hands of an armed militia,' Kebir concluded. The drones delivered to the separatist group come amid growing concerns about Polisario's involvement in war crimes. Several reports have evidenced that the Polisario Front sent its militias to Syria, interfering in the country's internal affairs. 'Over the years, Iran has fostered a wide array of proxy groups to advance its interests,' The Washington Post reported this month, quoting a regional official and a third European official who said Iran trained fighters from the Algeria-based Polisario Front that are now detained by Syria's new security forces. Among the series of revelations that emerged is a document marked as 'highly confidential,' outlining secret alliances between the fallen Syrian regime and the separatist group. The confidential document was an official correspondence from the Syrian government led by ousted president Bashar al-Assad, dating back to January 2012. Polisario members sent militias to undergo military training with the Syrian Arab army, according to the document, which also details a series of communications between Algeria's Ministry of Defense, Syria's Ministry of Defense, and Polisario's leadership, culminating in an agreement for combat training involving 120 Polisario members. The separatist group members were to be divided into four groups, the document detailed, revealing that senior members of the Polisario leadership also traveled to Beirut in December 2011 for consultations with Hezbollah to coordinate on military training missions in 'special operations' in Syria. Among other factors, these details have prompted increasing concerns and calls for the international community to designate the Polisario Front as a terrorist group. The latest appeal came from French politician Pierre Henri Dumont, who demanded that France label the separatist group as a terrorist group. '[Polisario] It threatens the peace and security of the region,' he said, concluding that the French government 'must designate it for what it is: a terrorist organization,' the politician said. The same appeal was echoed by Republican Congressman Joe Wilson, who said he will introduce legislation to designate the Polisario as terrorists. Liam Fox, former Secretary of State for Defense in the UK, made a similar appeal, saying: 'Like Hamas and Hezbollah, the Polisario Front is an Iranian proxy organisation. For the sake of our Moroccan allies, Western governments must move quickly to designate this group as a terrorist organization.' Tags: Algeria and polisarioPolisario and Algeria
Morocco World
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
Polisario Militias Intercept, Open Fire on MINURSO Convoy in Western Sahara
Rabat – Armed militias from the Polisario Front on Monday blocked and opened fire on a UN convoy in the Agounit area, a locality in the disputed territory of Western Sahara near the Mauritanian border. It is located east of the Moroccan security wall, around 900 kilometers from the Tindouf camps. Algerian political activist Oualid Kebir said the incident marks a serious escalation and reveals the ineffectiveness of the UN mission despite its large budget. 'The incident revealed the UN mission's effective inability to carry out its duties, despite the large budget allocated to it,' Kebir said . This obstruction comes just one week after UN envoy Staffan de Mistura made a significant shift in his position on the Western Sahara dispute during a Security Council briefing. Abandoning his previous proposal from October 2024, which suggested partitioning the territory between Morocco and the Polisario Front, De Mistura emphatically suggested that Morocco's Autonomy Plan is the only viable and politically realistic solution. This marked a major diplomatic victory for Morocco and a serious setback for both the Polisario and Algeria, who have long opposed the autonomy proposal. The envoy's revised stance aligns with growing international support for Morocco's plan, which has been viewed as credible and serious by the global community since 2007. This is not the first time the Polisario has obstructed MINURSO. In March 2023, the armed group blocked UN access to team sites located east of the security wall. 'The convoy departed on 22 March. As it approached Mehaires, some 20 Frente POLISARIO armed elements blocked the track and stopped the convoy, insisting that it could not proceed and had to return to Smara,' read a 2023 report by UNSG Antonio Guterres. At that time, strong pressure led to a temporary resolution, with the Polisario allowing UN peacekeepers to pass. Kebir believes the Agounit incident may be a turning point, possibly leading to Morocco expanding its control over the buffer zone, especially in the wake of growing international support for Morocco's autonomy plan. Earlier this month, the US reaffirmed its strong support for Morocco's sovereignty over Western Sahara, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio stating Washington's unequivocal backing of Rabat's position, another blow to Algeria's diplomatic ambitions. Several other countries have followed suit. Most recently, Croatia expressed its support. France, which had long tried to maintain neutrality, has now clearly backed Morocco's sovereignty and vowed to rally international support. Spain also made a dramatic shift in March 2022, officially endorsing the autonomy plan after a diplomatic crisis with Morocco, reversing decades of support for the separatist narrative. 'The message from Agounit signals that the hour of political and territorial resolution is drawing near, and the end of the UN deadlock in the Moroccan Sahara has become only a matter of time,' Kebir concluded. Tags: AlgeriaminorsuMoroccoPolisarioWestern sahara
Morocco World
14-04-2025
- Business
- Morocco World
Algeria Plays Silent Card as AFRICOM Confirms Invitation for African Lion 2025
Rabat – Converging reports showcased Algeria's calculated silence, especially after the US Africa Command (AFRICOM) confirmed its invitation to the Algerian regime's army to participate as an observer in the African Lion 2025 military exercises. Oualid Kebir, an Algerian analyst, confirmed the news today, sharing a response from AFRICOM about the extension of an invitation to Algeria's army to participate as an observer. 'Algeria was invited to observe the African Lion in Tunisia. We are currently working to confirm if they are going to observe the exercise,' an executive from AFRICOM confirmed to Kebir. However, the AFRICOM officer has not provided any further details about Algeria's regime participation. The Algerian army had been initially listed among the observers alongside Belgium, India, Qatar, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of the Congo, and Equatorial Guinea. However, a new version of the announcement that confirms the official launch of the African Lion exercises scheduled to begin on April 14 in Tunisia, shows the information removed. The premier annual exercise on the continent will extend to May, wth activities in Ghana, Senegal, and Morocco. Algeria's silence on its observer status invitation to the military exercise comes as it continues to publicize its long-standing public position rejecting any form of cooperation with Israel. The Algerian regime has constantly criticized countries that have re-established ties with Israel, particularly Morocco, to frame the move as against the Palestinian cause, despite Rabat's firm stance that its policy on Palestine remains unchanged. Algeria's rhetoric is part of its maneuvers to divert international attention and employ the issue to link the Palestinian cause with the Western Sahara dispute. The Algerian regime has long used the Polisario Front to manipulate international sentiment by portraying the separatist leadership as a victim to undermine Morocco's territorial integrity. However, several reports have confirmed cooperation between Algeria and Israel, particularly in trade. A report from the Economic Complexity Observatory showed in February that Algeria is the fourth among Arab countries to export goods to Israel. I24 News picked up the data from the observatory, noting that Algeria has been engaged in trade with Israel since at least 2017, with total exports exceeding $30 million. 'In 2017, Israel exported $7k to Algeria. There were no main exports from Israel to Algeria in 2017. During the last 9 years, the exports of Israel to Algeria have decreased at an annualized rate of 34.6%, from $320k in 2008 to $7k in 2017,' said the report. Algeria's hypocrisy was also evident after Algeria's president Abdelmadjid Tebboune said in February that his country is willing to normalize ties with Israel upon the establishment of a Palestinian state. 'This aligns with the position of my predecessors, Presidents Chadli and Bouteflika, who had no issue with Israel,' the Algerian leader claimed. Yet this statement starkly contradicted the Algerian regime's relentless and well-documented condemnation of Morocco and its diplomatic ties with Israel. Upon its decision to cut ties with Morocco in 2021, Algeria's regime brought up its southern neighbor's relations with Tel Aviv and cited fears of 'Zionist spies with Moroccan passports.'
