Algeria to expel 12 officials from the French embassy

The Foreign Minister in France said that Algeria asked 12 employees of the French embassy to leave the country within 48 hours.

Jean -Nawil Barrot added that he was linked to the accusation of three Algerians in France on Friday, one of whom is a consular official.

They are accused of participating in the kidnapping last year from the Prince of Boukhur, 41 years old, and he is a critic of the Algerian government and has a large audience on social media, which was reported to have been granted asylum in France in 2023.

Barrut urged Algeria to “abandon” the expulsion and said that France was ready “to respond immediately” if they advance.

Bukhur, also known as Amir Dies, has lived in France since 2016, according to what was granted political asylum in 2023.

He was kidnapped in April 2024 in the southern suburbs of Paris and released the next day, according to his lawyer Eric Bluvir.

Plouvier told Agence France -Presse that Boukhur was “the subject of two serious attacks, one in 2022 and the other on the evening of April 29, 2024”.

The French media reported that it was forced to enter a car with a flashing light by “fake police officers”, then it was issued the next day without explanation.

Algeria has issued nine international arrest orders against him, accusing him of fraud and the interconnection of terrorist organizations.

He denies these allegations. In 2022, French courts refused to hand it over.

This issue is the latest in an increasing number of accidents that exacerbated France and Algeria.

It includes arrest and imprisonment in Algeria, the French author, the style Boualem SensalHe was accused of undermining the regional safety of Algeria.

Algeria summoned its ambassador from Paris last year after France supported the claim of Morocco To the disputed western screaming area.

A diplomatic source told Agence France Book

On Monday, Barrot said: “I am asking the Algerian authorities to give up these expense measures … If the decision to send our officials is preserved, we will have no other option except to respond immediately.”

Barrot claimed that the expulsion was in response to the accusation of three Algerian citizens on Friday in Paris – including the consular official – on charges of kidnapping, arbitrary detention, illegal imprisonment and participation in a terrorist organization.

The Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it summoned the French Ambassador Stephen Romant in response to “the expression of its strong protest” and called for the immediate release of the official, according to the official partial news agency.

He added that the individual “was arrested in public places and then detained it without notification through diplomatic channels.”

The ministry claimed that this step “was not a coincidence, as was happening in a very specific context with the aim of strengthening the process of re -launching bilateral relations.”

Temporary steps were taken to reform relations between the two countries through a phone call between French President Emmanuel Macron and President Abdel Habidjid Tibon in March.

“The presidents had a long and explicit exchange of Woody on the state of bilateral relations and tensions that have accumulated in recent months,” said in a joint statement.

After an official visit to Algeria on April 6, where he met with Tebboun, Barrot said he hoped for a “new stage” in relations.