Algeria asks 12 French officials to leave in 48 hours

Algeria has asked 12 French officials to leave in 48 hours, the French foreign minister said Monday, adding that this was linked to the arrest of three Algerian nationals in France.

"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," Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said.

The 12 include some members of the French interior ministry, a diplomatic source told AFP.

On Friday, French prosecutors indicted three Algerians, including a consular official, on suspicion of involvement in the April 2024 abduction of an Algerian influencer, Amir Boukhors, in a Paris suburb.

The indictment comes at a delicate time in relations between Algeria and its former colonial power, with Algiers claiming the move was aimed at scuppering recent attempts to repair ties.

Boukhors, known as "Amir DZ," is an opponent of the Algerian government and has more than a million followers on TikTok.

He has been in France since 2016 and was granted political asylum in 2023. He was abducted in April 2024 and released the following day, according to his lawyer.

Algiers is demanding the influencer's return to face trial, having issued nine international arrest warrants against him, accusing him of fraud and terror offenses.

AFP