France to expel 12 Algerian diplomats, recall ambassador

PARIS: France on Tuesday said it was going to expel 12 Algerian diplomats and recall its ambassador in a tit-for-tat move after the North African country ordered the departure of 12 French diplomatic staff a day earlier.

The rising tensions between Paris and its former colony comes after French police detained an Algerian consular official on suspicion of involvement in the kidnapping of an opposition activist.   

France will expel 12 agents serving in the Algerian consular and diplomatic network in France and will recall its ambassador to Algiers for consultations, the French presidency said on Tuesday.

The move comes after Algeria protested against France’s indictment of three Algerians, including a consular official, on suspicion of involvement in the 2024 abduction of Algerian opposition activist, Amir Boukhors, in a Paris suburb.

The men, who are also being prosecuted for “terrorist” conspiracy, were placed in pre-trial detention.

Boukhors, an influencer known by the nickname “Amir DZ”, has more than a million followers on TikTok.

France later said Algeria had expelled 12 of its diplomatic staff.

France’s relations with Algeria, a former colony, have long been complicated, but took a turn for the worse last year when President Emmanuel Macron supported Morocco’s position over that of Algeria over the disputed Western Sahara region.

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But only last week, Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot had said that ties between the two countries were returning to normal.