Algeria reports shooting down Malian Akinci drone
The Algerian army has announced that it shot down a Malian Akinci-type drone. «A unit of the air defense of the 6th Military Region detected and shot down an armed reconnaissance drone near the border town of Tin Zaoutine on the night of April 1, 2025, at midnight», the Algerian Ministry of Defense stated in a press release on Tuesday. The drone had «penetrated Algerian airspace by 2 kilometers» before being intercepted.
Later in the evening, the Malian government responded to the incident. «The General Staff of the Malian Armed Forces informs the public that on the night of March 31 to April 1, 2025, an unmanned aircraft belonging to the FAMa crashed near Tin-Zawatene, in the Kidal region. The aircraft was on a routine mission to monitor the territory as part of operations to secure people and property».
Meanwhile, the Azawad Liberation Front, a group opposed to the Malian regime, had claimed responsibility for downing a Malian drone 24 hours earlier while it was flying over Tin Zaoutine. Their statement was accompanied by photos showing the aircraft's debris.
The drone incident echoes the circumstances surrounding the release of a Spanish national kidnapped on January 14 in Algeria. Both the Algerian government and the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) had claimed credit for securing the safe return of tourist Navarro Giane
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Ya Biladi
8 hours ago
- Ya Biladi
UNHRC criticizes Algeria for mass expulsions of sub-Saharan migrants
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) opened its 59th regular session on June 16, running through July 9, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. During an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants, Gehad Madi, several participants denounced Algeria's mass expulsions of sub-Saharan migrants. A representative of the Network for Training, Research, and Action on African Migrations strongly condemned what she described as inhumane collective expulsions carried out by Algerian authorities. «Since 2024, many migrants, including women and children, have been abandoned in the Sahara Desert without water, food, or humanitarian aid. These practices are systematic and represent serious violations of international law and humanitarian conventions», she said. The Network also raised alarm over the growing number of mass disappearances of migrants and their exploitation by human trafficking networks, particularly in Libya, all unfolding in a climate of impunity. In light of what it called a catastrophic situation, the organization urged the countries concerned—including Algeria—to «strengthen regional cooperation to better protect migrants, establish effective mechanisms to search for and identify missing persons, and prioritize the protection of vulnerable groups, especially women and children». «Algeria is not only violating migrants' rights, it is also directly endangering thousands of lives», the Network added. In 2024, Algeria expelled more than 30,000 irregular migrants to Niger, up from 26,000 in 2023. These deportations have been condemned by the authorities in Niamey. Niger's Minister of the Interior, General Mohamed Toumba, expressed his outrage in April during a meeting with the director of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), stating that the expulsions «violate the principles of good cooperation and international treaties. These actions are regrettable and unacceptable». According to the NGO Alarme Phone Sahara, more than 16,000 irregular migrants—including women and children—have been expelled from Algeria to Niger since April. Meanwhile, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said on April 26 during a visit to Béchar that he was open to regularizing undocumented sub-Saharan migrants, «provided their entry into the country is regulated».
Ya Biladi
2 days ago
- Ya Biladi
Morocco and Algeria allies clash in PARLACEN over Western Sahara issue
The Central American Parliament (PARLACEN) recently became the scene of a diplomatic standoff between allies of Morocco and Algeria. During a plenary session held on May 28 in Panama City, José Antonio Zepeda, vice president of PARLACEN's leftist group and representative of Nicaragua, a country with longstanding ties to the so-called «Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR)» read out a declaration of support for the «SADR». The text described the entity as the «sole and legitimate representative of the Sahrawi people», claiming it is backed by the African Union and over 80 countries worldwide. The declaration also praised «the diplomatic and political efforts of the Polisario Front, its legitimate political organization», aimed at implementing the 1991 Peace Agreement that calls for a self-determination referendum. It urged the international community to enforce the agreement and allow the Sahrawi people to freely determine their future. The statement, aligned with Algeria's position on the Sahara, drew sharp criticism from Guatemalan lawmakers. On June 12, thirteen PARLACEN members from Guatemala issued a counter-declaration in support of Morocco's territorial integrity. In their response, the MPs expressed «gratitude to the Kingdom of Morocco as a friendly state and strategic partner of PARLACEN, committed to peace, development, and cooperation among nations». They also called on PARLACEN's presidency to ensure that institutional statements reflect the legitimate consensus of all members and are not used to promote individual ideological agendas, in order to preserve the forum's credibility and neutrality. The political tug-of-war between Morocco and Algeria-aligned camps within PARLACEN appears to be escalating. This week, a delegation of Nicaraguan MPs who sit in PARLACEN arrived in Algiers for a visit. On Tuesday, they met with Mohamed Khouane, president of the Foreign Affairs, Community Affairs, and Cooperation Committee of Algeria's National People's Assembly (APN). According to the Nicaraguan delegation, the visit aimed to «initiate political and diplomatic dialogue with the Algerian National People's Assembly». The lawmakers were also received at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by the Secretary of State in charge of the Algerian community abroad. Talks reportedly focused on «strengthening friendship and cooperation between Algeria and PARLACEN, with the goal of creating a new dynamic in parliamentary relations and joint initiatives with member states of this regional legislative body», according to a statement by Algerian diplomacy. For context, Algeria's lower house signed a memorandum of understanding with PARLACEN on December 4, 2024, in Panama City. PARLACEN includes six member states: El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, and the Dominican Republic. Algeria also holds observer status in the Latin American and Caribbean Parliament (Parlatino) since September 2024. Despite Algeria's push, Morocco enjoys significant support within PARLACEN. On May 2, during a visit to Laâyoune, the body's president, Carlos René Hernández, publicly reaffirmed the Moroccan identity of the Sahara.
Ya Biladi
2 days ago
- Ya Biladi
Spain approves the reception of 3,000 children from the Tindouf camps
The Spanish government has approved the reception of «around 3,000 children» from the Tindouf camps this summer. «At the proposal of the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration, the Council of Ministers has taken the necessary steps to authorize the temporary stay of Sahrawi minors and issue visas for their chaperones, as part of the 'Holidays in Peace 2025' program», the government said in a statement. Launched in the mid-1990s, the program aims to temporarily host Sahrawi children from the Tindouf camps. Between 2014 and 2024, approximately 34,500 Sahrawi minors benefited from the initiative, according to the same source. The program is coordinated by several associations supporting the Sahrawi people, the National Sahrawi Delegation, and the Sahrawi delegations of various autonomous communities. The Ministries of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration; Foreign Affairs, the European Union, and Cooperation; Interior; Territorial Policy; and Democratic Memory, along with the autonomous communities hosting the children, all participate in this effort. Over the past decade, regions such as Andalusia, Catalonia, Castilla-La Mancha, the Basque Country, and Galicia have been the main hosts for Sahrawi minors under the program. Initially launched in 1979 by Spanish communists, «Holidays in Peace» has since been used by the Polisario to promote its position in Spain. Last year, the Forum of Support for Tindouf Autonomists (FORSATIN) criticized the program, warning about the «uprooting of peace ambassadors». Ten days ago, sources from Spanish intelligence services reported that «dozens of Sahrawis born in the Tindouf camps (Algeria), who had participated in the 'Holidays in Peace' program», were found to be involved with terrorist groups operating in the Sahel, according to the daily La Vanguardia.
