First Independent Mena Newspaper
Iranian President Hassan Rohani’s March 12 visit to Algiers has been postponed sine die, few weeks after German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s February visit was called off at the last minute over health concerns of the Algerian President. The Iranian President was due to make a stopover in Algiers on his way to South Africa and […]
In a pessimistic tone that bodes ill for Algeria’s economic prospects, Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal announced yet a new slump in the country’s foreign exchange reserves, which currently stand at $112 billion. As Algeria’s revenues continue to be battered by the slump in oil prices, Sellal, who was speaking in Annaba at a meeting […]
German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that an agreement has been sealed with Tunisian authorities to speed up the process of repatriating the Tunisians who failed to obtain the status of refugee in Germany after a rejected Tunisian awaiting deportation killed 12 people at a Berlin market in December. Merkel made the announcement during a two-day […]
Christopher Ross, the current Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary General for the Sahara, has informed the new UN Chief Antonio Guterres about his intention to resign as his term ends in March, several Moroccan and Algerian media outlets reported. Ross, 74, has allegedly communicated his wish not to renew his term in office as […]
The Special Representative for the Sahara and Head of the MINURSO, Kim Bolduc met with Polisario officials in their rear base in Tindouf, southwestern Algeria, to discuss the situation in Guerguarat, the southernmost tip of the Saharan provinces in the buffer strip on the borders with Mauritania, where polisario militiamen are still stationed after Morocco’s […]
Four terrorist groups operating in the Sahel announced their merger into one group pledging allegiance to Al Qaeda and its Jordanian leader Azarkawi. The four terrorist groups were brought together under the command of Iyad Ag Ghali, the leader of Ansar Eddine terrorist group based in Mali. The new terrorist organization bears the name of […]
The persistence of the Algerian regime on maintaining the borders closed with Morocco, along with the ardent support for the separatist thesis in the Sahara coupled with hegemonic ambitions that make other Algerian neighbors wary of Algiers’ intentions, have increased Algeria’s isolation in its immediate neighborhood: North Africa and the Sahel. By closing the borders […]
Morocco is set to reduce dependence on foreign arms suppliers through developing a domestic military industry with Spanish, French, US, Belgian and British partners under joint venture agreements, the Strategic Defense Intelligence (SDI) said in a recently published report. The reports notes that Morocco, the 13th largest global arms importer, is negotiating terms to set […]
Dozens were injured including three policemen during a suicide attack using an explosive belt against a police station in the eastern Algerian city of Constantine. The explosive belt was detonated when a policeman opened fire on the terrorist outside the police station. “A policeman who was in front of the police station located in a […]
The self-proclaimed SADR entity keeps receiving heavy blows from its former supporters in Africa. The latest of such blows to SADR was dealt by Zambia, which has officially withdrawn recognition of the Algerian-based separatist entity. The announcement was made by Zambia’s Foreign Minister Harry Kalaba, who voiced his country’s support for the UN process to […]