Strained ties between France and Algeria are under fresh pressure following Algiers’ decision to expel 12 French officials within 48 hours an abrupt move linked to the arrest of three Algerian nationals in France, including a consular staffer.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot called on Algerian authorities to reconsider. “I am asking Algerian authorities to abandon these expulsion measures… if the decision to send back our officials is maintained, we will have no other choice but to respond immediately,” he said on Monday.
The expelled personnel include members of the French interior ministry, according to a diplomatic source cited by AFP.
At the center of the fallout is the high-profile abduction case of Amir Boukhors, better known online as “Amir DZ.” A vocal critic of the Algerian government, Boukhors commands a large digital following, with over a million TikTok followers. French prosecutors last week indicted three Algerians including a consular official on suspicion of being involved in his April 2024 kidnapping from a Paris suburb.
Algeria has interpreted the arrests as a politically charged move that threatens the fragile thaw in its long-complicated relationship with France. Officials in Algiers have accused Paris of using the legal action to derail recent diplomatic progress.
