Gara Djebilet and the Southwest Railway Line: Why is this dual Algerian launch generating so much emotion and commentary in Morocco?

The dual launch of operations at the Gara Djebilet mine and the 950‑kilometre Tindouf–Béchar railway line has triggered an unusual wave of reactions, emotions, and commentary—far beyond economic and technical circles. This surge is neither random nor exaggerated: it reflects issues of sovereignty, historical memory, regional propaganda, and strategic projection that go far beyond the simple scope of an infrastructure project.

1. A project that cracks an old irredentist narrative

For decades, part of the Moroccan propaganda machine—carried by media outlets close to the royal palace—has promoted the idea of an alleged “Moroccan identity” of the Algerian wilayas of Béchar and Tindouf.

This narrative deliberately ignores international legal realities, including the 1972 Algeria–Morocco border treaty, which has been ratified, registered, and submitted to the United Nations.

Yet Algeria does more than simply assert its rights: it brings them to life on the ground. By investing billions of dollars in regions that Moroccan propaganda falsely labels as “disputed”, the Algerian state sends a clear message.

States that doubt their own sovereignty—or fear territorial challenges—do not invest massively in heavy, strategic, irreversible infrastructure.

Algeria’s investment is therefore a political act of sovereignty, a statement of confidence in the future of these territories, deeply rooted in the heart and history of the Algerian people.

2. The end of a geostrategic myth about Western Sahara

Another Moroccan narrative is collapsing: the claim that Algeria harbours expansionist ambitions in Western Sahara in order to obtain access to the Atlantic Ocean.

Reality is now indisputable: the Gara Djebilet – Tindouf – Béchar railway line connects the mine directly to Algeria’s northern ports, integrating the Southwest into the national economic network without any external projection.

This logistical choice—rational and sovereign—permanently destroys the myth of an Algeria “seeking Atlantic access”.

Algeria is connecting its South to its North, its resources to its ports, its territory to itself. Nothing more. Nothing less.

3. An infrastructural shock that is hard to digest

The shock is all the greater because the comparison is harsh.

While Morocco’s railway network barely exceeds 2,060 km, Algeria has completed 950 km of railway in just 20 months—nearly half of Morocco’s entire network—under far more demanding geographic and climatic conditions.

This achievement partly explains the nervousness now visible.

Unable to respond with comparable structural projects, the Moroccan regime turns to the tactics it knows best: denigration, disinformation, and media agitation.

Lacking rails, it unleashes its media echo chambers.

4. A social message that contrasts sharply with the Moroccan model

Beyond geopolitics, the project carries a deep social and national dimension. By allocating more than 2 billion dollars to connect southern populations to the national rail system, Algeria asserts a clear vision: there is neither “useful Algeria” nor “useless Algeria.”

This choice stands in stark contrast to Morocco’s openly assumed model, where decision‑makers speak without hesitation of a “useful Morocco” and an “useless Morocco”, leaving entire regions to marginalization.

In Algeria, the state invests, builds, and plans ahead.

These modern infrastructures will have major economic, social, and demographic impacts, fostering the emergence of new cities, service hubs, and activity zones along the Béchar–Tindouf axis.

5. Gara Djebilet: the economic turning point of the Southwest

Finally, the most devastating blow to Moroccan propaganda is the colossal economic impact of the Gara Djebilet mine.

Forecasts point to annual revenues exceeding 20 billion dollars in the medium term.

This economic flow will radically transform Algeria’s Southwest and make Tindouf one of the richest wilayas in the country.

This dynamic will make any comparison with the occupied Western Sahara untenable.

While Moroccan propaganda sought to compare Tindouf with its occupied territories, the economic, social, and infrastructural gap will become abyssal.

Conclusion

The dual launch of Gara Djebilet and the Southwest railway is not just an industrial achievement.

It is an act of sovereignty, a silent yet relentless response to propaganda, a lesson in national development, and a fully assumed strategic choice.

Algeria does not answer lies with speeches: it answers with railways, mines, cities, and the future.

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By Belgacem Merbah

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