France has recalled its ambassador to Algeria and ordered 12 Algerian diplomats to leave Paris, escalating a diplomatic row with Algeria, which had earlier expelled 12 French officials.
The crisis began when an Algerian consular official was arrested in Paris over the kidnapping of an exiled Algerian influencer, Amir DZ, a government critic with over a million followers on social media.
Algeria’s government saw the arrest as an attempt to “humiliate” the country and responded with the expulsion of French officials.
France’s President Emmanuel Macron’s office called Algeria’s move “unjustified and incomprehensible”.
The diplomatic tensions have been building for months, particularly after France recognized Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, a move Algeria strongly opposes as it backs the pro-independence Polisario Front in the disputed territory.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Algeria’s authorities “have chosen escalation,” while Algeria’s Secretary of State Sofiane Chaib blamed French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau for the crisis.
Despite the tensions, Barrot indicated that France would eventually resume dialogue with Algeria, stating, “If we want results for the French people, sooner or later we’ll have to have a frank, level-headed and challenging dialogue”.
