Algeria has ordered twelve French officials to leave the country within 48 hours, increasing diplomatic tensions between the two countries.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot asserted on Monday that the order was linked to the recent arrest of three criticized Algerian nationals suspected of kidnapping the Algerian government in Paris last year.
Barot asked the Algerian authorities to “abandon these deportations”, saying that if they stick to their decisions, France has no choice but to “respond immediately”.
The 12 included some members of the French Interior Ministry, a diplomatic source told AFP.
Last week, French prosecutors sued three Algerians, including a consular official, for alleged involvement in the kidnapping of Amir Boukhors.
The man detained before detention was also prosecuted for a “terrorist” conspiracy.
Social media influencers are opponents of the Algerian government, with over one million followers on Tiktok under the name “Amir DZ”.
Boukhors, granted asylum by France in 2023, was taken away in the Paris suburbs last April and released the next day, according to his lawyer.
Algiers demanded that he return to the trial, and he issued nine international arrest warrants for allegations of fraud and terrorism.
Diplomatic quarrels could overturn recent efforts to normalize tensions between France and its former North African colonies, including Barott’s visit to Algeria a week ago.
Last July, French President Emmanuel Macron angered Algeria after recognizing the plans for the Western Sahara under Morocco’s sovereignty.
Tensions were intensified last month when the Algerian court sentenced France-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal to five years in prison for undermining national unity, prompting him to call on him to spare Macron’s freedom.
Just last week, after Balotte held talks with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Balotte announced that contacts would return to normal.
If Algiers follow its orders, it would be the first batch of French diplomats to be expelled since Algeria gained independence in 1962, the French Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs said on Monday.
