Hana Mansour denounces the use of her image by Le Point to illustrate an article by Kamel Daoud Copy link

Algeria Gate: President of the Republic Abdelmadjid Tebboune spoke publicly for the first time about the reasons that led Algeria to send combat aircraft to Niger at the end of August 2026. In extracts from his periodic interview with the national press broadcast on the night of 2–3 October, the head of state directly linked this decision to the attempt at destabilisation that occurred in Niamey.

According to Abdelmadjid Tebboune, the sequence of events was decisive. Nigerien Prime Minister Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine had just carried out a working visit to Algeria on 26 and 27 August 2026. Shortly after his return to Niamey, an attempted coup took place on the night of 28–29 August, notably around Air Base 101 in the Nigerien capital.

The Algerian president considered that the timing of this attempt constituted a “provocation” toward Algeria. He declared that aircraft had been sent because “some people had gone too far,” without, however, publicly identifying the actors to whom he was referring.

Four Algerian Su-30s sent to Niamey

The Algerian Ministry of National Defence had announced on 30 August the dispatch of two patrols composed of four Sukhoi Su-30 fighter aircraft, accompanied by a tanker aircraft. The planes landed the same day in Niamey.

According to the official communiqué of the ministry, this mission had been decided on the instruction of President Tebboune and at the request of the Nigerien authorities, in order to support the Nigerien army after the events aimed at destabilising the country.

The Nigerien prime minister himself welcomed the Algerian deployment on its arrival and expressed his thanks to President Tebboune as well as to the Algerian people for this support.

Algeria directly links Niger’s stability to its own security

This intervention illustrates the strategic importance that Algiers attaches to Niger and to the stability of the Sahel. Algeria shares a long border with Niger and has for several years considered instability in this region, terrorism and political upheavals as issues directly linked to its national security.

The dispatch of fighters to Niamey was also noted because it constitutes a particularly visible use of Algerian military means beyond national borders. Le Monde noted that the deployment included four Su-30s as well as transport and refuelling aircraft, seeing in it a notable evolution in Algeria’s regional posture.

For Abdelmadjid Tebboune, the decision therefore appears as a signal of support for the Nigerien authorities and of firmness in the face of any attempt at destabilisation liable to affect Algeria’s security environment.

The president did not, however, name the parties he suspects of being behind the “provocation.” At this stage, it is therefore appropriate to distinguish his political assessment from the officially established facts concerning the authors and the motivations of the attempted coup.

Algeria Gate: An illegal administrative decision can have heavy financial consequences for the state. On September 24, 2026, the Administrative Court of Melun ordered the administration to pay more than €33,500 to an Algerian national after the illegal refusal of her residence certificate.

The case dates back to August 30, 2021. The Prefecture of Seine-et-Marne had refused to renew this Algerian woman’s residence certificate bearing the mention “private and family life.” This decision was accompanied by an obligation to leave French territory (OQTF) within thirty days.

The Algerian national challenged this measure in court. In 2023, the Administrative Court of Appeal finally annulled the prefectural refusal, thereby recognizing the illegality of the decision taken against her.

But the annulment was not enough to repair the consequences suffered during this period. The applicant therefore initiated a new procedure to obtain compensation for the damages caused by the refusal of residence.

The Administrative Court of Melun ruled in her favor and ordered the state to pay her more than €33,500.

This case recalls that an illegal prefectural decision concerning the residence of a foreigner can not only be annulled by the courts, but can also give rise to a right to compensation when the person concerned demonstrates the existence of damage directly linked to that decision.

By Amar Belani, former Algerian Ambassador

Algeria Gate: The interview given by Massad Boulos, senior advisor to US President, Donald Trump, on Arab and African affairs, to France 24 this week was no polite diplomatic exercise. In four clear statements, Washington’s envoy dismantled the triumphalist narrative Morocco has relentlessly pushed for the past year.

First statement: Recognition of a temporary deadlock while Rabat proclaimed victory

“There is, at the moment, no solution that you can see or touch.”

Morocco built its entire communications strategy on a simple fiction: that Security Council Resolution 2797 had settled the Western Sahara question, leaving only the task of collecting the spoils. Boulos’s words cut through that claim. After three rounds of talks, the dossier remains stalled. Reality has overtaken propaganda.

Second statement: The patience that embarrasses those demanding an ultimatum

Boulos is waiting for the Polisario Front’s response. No deadline. No ultimatum.

While Rabat called for a more aggressive American approach and counted on Washington’s impatience to force the pace, the United States has chosen to wait. Moroccan diplomacy’s calculations have been exposed.

Third statement: Algeria praised, not singled out

For years, Rabat has insisted that Algeria is the real obstacle that must be isolated to unblock negotiations. Boulos chose this precise moment to do the opposite. He highlighted a constructive partnership and publicly thanked the Algerian authorities.

Fourth statement: Algeria cannot impose a solution

This is the line that will echo longest in Rabat. Boulos stated clearly that Algeria cannot impose a solution on Western Sahara, yet it can encourage the process—and, according to Washington, it has done so.

This position directly contradicts Morocco’s long-standing attempt to portray Algeria as the principal party to the conflict. Under the United Nations framework, the two parties remain Morocco and the Polisario Front. Algeria and Mauritania are neighboring countries invited to cooperate. Nothing more, nothing less.

What Rabat refuses to see

These four statements deliver a single message: the American administration never handed Morocco a blank cheque.

In its feverish and poorly calculated triumphalism, Morocco treated Resolution 2797 as an accomplished Algerian surrender. The US official has just reminded everyone that it was only a framework for negotiations.

A framework produces no result by itself. An agreement must still be reached, and above all the Polisario Front must give its clear and freely expressed consent. That remains the only condition for a mutually acceptable solution.