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Showing posts with the label MOROCCO

Morocco–Israel: Drone production introduces a new strategic equation. What response for Algiers?

The announcement of the deployment of an Israeli industrial capability for drone manufacturing in Morocco marks a major turning point in the Maghreb’s military balance. This development raises a central question: how can Algeria respond to this technological upgrade by its western neighbor? Options do exist, and they fall within the framework of a Russo-Algerian military cooperation that continues to strengthen. A Changing Regional Context: The Drone Factor as a Power Multiplier Armed drones are no longer just a tactical tool: they have become a strategic instrument, capable of striking deep, saturating defenses, and reshaping operational doctrines. For Rabat, integrating Israeli know-how into local drone production paves the way for capacity autonomy and asymmetric projection in the latent conflict over Western Sahara. In response, Algiers could turn to Russia’s long-range drone sector, particularly systems like the “Geran-2” (known as Shahed-136 in Iran), whose effectiveness has b...

Ahmed Rissouni: The Preacher Who Turns Theology into Geopolitics

Ahmed Rissouni, former president of what is called “The International Union of Muslim Scholars” , returns once again to his favorite exercise: stoking discord, legitimizing confrontation, and distributing certificates of “national purity” according to the needs of the Moroccan palace. The man who once called for a “holy war” against Algeria and a “march on Tindouf” now appears under a new guise—but with an even more dangerous discourse, saturated with insinuations and falsehoods designed to inflame an entire region. In a lengthy article, he proclaims that the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic has been “definitively buried” by a decision of the UN Security Council—as if the United Nations had suddenly renounced the principle of self-determination. Rissouni forgets—or pretends to forget—that the UN has never recognized Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, and that the conflict remains officially listed as a decolonization issue. This is not analysis; it is propaganda disguised as...

Response from Belgacem Merbah to Tahar Ben Jelloun’s Recent Position Regarding Boualem Sansal

When Historical Ignorance Becomes a Geopolitical Weapon Tahar Ben Jelloun’s recent intervention in Le Figaro purports to offer a literary testimony; in reality, it is a discursive strategy meticulously aligned with the geopolitical imperatives of the makhzen . By exploiting the singular case of Boualem Sansal, Ben Jelloun claims to shed light on Algeria’s political history; yet what he truly reveals is this: the unwavering determination of the Moroccan literary lobby to instrumentalize memory and literature in order to weaken Algeria and serve the interests of the royal palace. This analysis is framed within a perspective that asserts Algeria’s national sovereignty—both historical and contemporary—and categorically rejects the Moroccan and Franco-colonial narratives that Ben Jelloun reproduces without nuance. 1. A Voice Undermined by Silence on Moroccan Repression Let us state the obvious: Tahar Ben Jelloun is not a neutral observer of the Maghreb. While Algeria stood alone again...

Moroccan Provocations: A Symptom of a Historical Complex Toward Algeria

In recent months, Moroccan media outlets and circles close to the Makhzen have multiplied claims suggesting that Morocco harbors an alleged intention to “occupy” the Algerian cities of Béchar and Tindouf — as if these regions were disputed territories. No Moroccan official has ever made such a statement, yet Rabat insists on nurturing this illusion. How can one explain these recurring provocations, especially when the military, diplomatic, and historical balance of power clearly favors Algeria? To understand this phenomenon, one must analyze it through historical, psychological, and geopolitical lenses. 1. A Historical Complex Rooted in Defeat and Rivalry Tension between Algeria and Morocco has deep roots that go back to the post-independence era. The Moroccan monarchy believed that an independent Algeria would remain “grateful” to Rabat for its alleged support during the war of liberation. Instead, it witnessed the emergence of a sovereign, revolutionary Algeria, proudly asserting its...

Morocco’s Silent War Against Algeria: Water, Pollution, and Drugs as Weapons of Hostility

For several years, the Kingdom of Morocco has pursued a deliberate policy of provocation and hostility toward Algeria — a policy that extends far beyond rhetoric into tangible acts affecting Algeria’s water, environment, and social fabric. While Rabat sheds crocodile tears over the suspension of the Maghreb–Europe Gas Pipeline, it has in fact been waging a silent war against Algeria through water deprivation, environmental pollution, and the export of narcotics — forming a coherent strategy aimed at undermining Algeria’s national security and stability. 1. Dams on the Border — A Deliberate Water War Along the western border, Morocco has built dozens of dams on rivers and streams that flow naturally into Algerian territory. These constructions, undertaken without coordination or bilateral agreements, have caused an environmental disaster in the Béchar region. The reduced flow of the Guir River has directly threatened the Djorf Torba Dam, one of Algeria’s most vital reservoirs in the sou...

Algeria and the Illusion of a “Peace Deal”: An Algerian Reading of the Washington Institute Note

In its recent PolicyWatch, the Washington Institute presents the enticing prospect of a sixty-day “peace deal,” elevating the Western Sahara file as the sole key to regional de-escalation . Such a vision, while rhetorically appealing, reflects a shallow understanding of Maghrebi realities. It confuses rivalry with war — though Algiers and Rabat are not at war — and reduces a structural, decades-long antagonism that predates 1975 to a single issue: Western Sahara. Even the note itself concedes that bilateral relations are at a “historic low” without being warlike, which makes the sixty-day ultimatum more of a performative gesture than a viable diplomatic timetable. A State Rivalry Rooted in Memory, Borders, and Security From Algeria’s standpoint, the American “diplomatic clock” ignores the historical underpinnings of the dispute: the Sand War (1963–64), the colonial legacy of unclarified borders, successive cycles of tension and freeze — including the land border closure since 1994 — an...

Morocco’s ‘Unity Day’: Celebrating Illusion to Ward Off Reality

  On November 4, 2025, Morocco announced the creation of a new national holiday, named “Unity Day” (عيد الوحدة), which will henceforth be celebrated every October 31. This day is intended to commemorate what Moroccan authorities describe as a “victory” in the Western Sahara issue. Yet this initiative raises many questions. Upon closer examination, no tangible event—whether military, diplomatic, or historical—objectively justifies the choice of this date. No decisive agreement has been signed, no new international recognition has been obtained, and no concrete progress on the ground appears to have marked this day in any significant way. It is precisely this absence of factual foundation that gives this decision both its meaning—and its controversy. By elevating October 31 to the status of a symbol of an unachieved triumph, the kingdom seems to wager on narrative over reality, on symbol over fact, on imagination over accomplishment. Thus, “Unity Day” appears less as the celebratio...

Resolution 2797: Between Morocco’s Setback and Algeria’s Firm Stand in the Struggle for International Legitimacy

The adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 2797 marks a new milestone in the diplomatic struggle over the Western Sahara issue. This resolution reaffirms a fundamental principle: there can be no solution outside the framework of international legality and the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination. While Rabat sought to portray the text as a “diplomatic victory” that consolidates its narrative, Algeria’s interpretation—articulated by Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf in his interview with Algeria International —places events in their proper context and sheds light on the underlying dynamics and power balances that shaped the decision. It is worth noting that this interview represents the first official statement by an Algerian official following the recent speech by the King of Morocco, in which he called for direct dialogue with the Algerian President. Strikingly, Minister Attaf made no mention of this overture, clearly reflecting the limited interest and credibility Algeria ac...

Bourita Speaks of “Humiliation” — Yet the True Disgrace Lies in the Handshake with the Murderers of Palestine

Once again, Morocco’s Foreign Minister, Nasser Bourita, emerges with a faltering discourse, seeking to mask political submission beneath the glitter of a so-called “diplomatic victory.” The man who opened the gates of Rabat to the Mossad now dares to speak of dignity and balance, though he was the one who sold his country’s honor on the altar of the Abraham Accords. What humiliation is he talking about? Is there any greater disgrace than shaking hands with the occupiers of Palestine while pretending to lecture Algeria on courage and restraint? What remains of a diplomacy that takes its orders from Tel Aviv and Washington? Morocco, once a bearer of Arab identity and resistance, has now become a rear base for Israeli intelligence and a conduit for Zionist schemes in the Maghreb. When Bourita speaks of a “hand extended toward Algeria,” we see only a hand stained with the blood of Gaza’s children — a hand that reached first toward the enemy before feigning a gesture of dialogue. Dialogue c...

Western Sahara: UN Resolution 2797 — A Geopolitical Turning Point with Deep Implications for Algeria

A seemingly technical decision, yet politically decisive On 31 October 2025, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2797, extending the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) for one additional year, until October 2026. Although this may appear as a routine administrative renewal, it actually represents a critical diplomatic juncture—one that could reshape the geopolitical balance of the Maghreb and directly affect Algeria’s vital national interests. An ambiguous resolution: neither a rupture nor full continuity Adopted by 11 votes in favor and 3 abstentions (China, Russia, and Pakistan), Resolution 2797 extends the mandate of MINURSO to maintain the ceasefire and prepare the conditions for a referendum on self-determination for the Sahrawi people. Contrary to some media narratives, the resolution does not recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. It reaffirms instead the principle of self-determination, the corner...

Western Sahara: Why Trump Could Not Change the Status of Guam or the Virgin Islands — Yet Morocco Believes It Can Do So in the Sahara

Since 1963, the Western Sahara has been listed by the United Nations among the non-self-governing territories, awaiting the completion of the process of decolonization. This status means, in legal terms, that the fate of the territory can only be determined through a UN-supervised referendum on self-determination, in accordance with the UN Charter and successive resolutions of the General Assembly. Yet, in 2020, Morocco sought to exploit a unilateral recognition by former U.S. President Donald Trump of its alleged sovereignty over the territory—a political transaction tied to the normalization agreements known as the Abraham Accords. However, despite its media resonance, this move has no legal weight under international law, especially when compared to Trump’s own inability to alter the legal status of territories administered by the United States for decades. The United States and Its Non-Self-Governing Territories: Sovereignty on Hold The United States administers several territories...