France and Algeria Expel Diplomats in Escalating Crisis

APR 16 2025·Updated APR 17 2025

Story

Above: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot (L) meets with Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune (R) in Algiers, Algeria on April 6, 2025 Image credit: Algerian Presidency/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images

The Facts

France ordered the expulsion of 12 Algerian diplomats and recalled its ambassador on Tuesday, a day after Algiers announced the expulsion of an equal number of French diplomatic officials amid escalating bilateral tensions.
The New Arab
CNN
AA
The French officials were expelled following the arrest of an Algerian consular official by the French authorities over the abduction of Amir Boukhors, an Algerian influencer and well-known critic of the Algerian government, in a Paris suburb in 2024. He was released a day later.
Dw.Com
Africanews
On Friday, French authorities arrested three men under investigation for the "kidnap, holding and arbitrary detention" of Boukhors, with the French anti-terror prosecutor claiming that one of the arrested men worked for the Algerian consulate.
Guardian
NDTV
In response, the Algerian Foreign Ministry claimed that the French prosecutor's office wanted to "humiliate" Algeria by allegedly disregarding the official's consular status and ordered the expulsion of 12 French officials.
BBC News
The Associated Press
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot responded by accusing Algiers on X of escalation and announced that Paris would react to the "unjustified and incomprehensible decision" by expelling 12 Algerian officials and recalling its ambassador for consultations.
X
The latest diplomatic escalation comes just two weeks after a conciliatory phone call between French President Emmanuel Macron and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and shortly after a visit by Barrot to Algiers, intended to ease bilateral tensions.
France 24
Sahara Reporters

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

The Algerian consular official's arrest is as much proof of France's deliberate intention to disrupt bilateral relations as the former colonial power's support for Morocco's Western Sahara plans. However, Algeria is a sovereign nation and will continue to resolutely defend its dignity.

Atalayar

Sahara Reporters

Narrative B

France must defend its sovereign interests and prevent the country from becoming a playground for foreign security services, particularly given Algeria's seeming involvement in the kidnapping of a political refugee on French soil and its refusal to cooperate on critical security matters.

NDTV

The New Arab