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Algeria, Libya Affirm Need to Secure Borders, Boost Investment

The Algerian-Libyan Debdeb-Ghadames border crossing
The Algerian-Libyan Debdeb-Ghadames border crossing
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Algeria, Libya Affirm Need to Secure Borders, Boost Investment

The Algerian-Libyan Debdeb-Ghadames border crossing
The Algerian-Libyan Debdeb-Ghadames border crossing

A Libyan delegation, led by Head of the Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid Dbeibeh, held talks with Tunisian officials in Algiers on Sunday.

During the talks, both sides stressed the importance of securing borders and boosting investments between the two countries.

Algerian Foreign Minister Sabri Boukadoum affirmed his country’s “unlimited” solidarity with Libyans to overcome their crisis.

He highlighted efforts to support Libyan authorities in restoring political stability and security.

Following talks with his Libyan counterpart Najla al-Mangoush, Boukadoum said they discussed bilateral ties and means of attaining both people’s interests.

They further exchanged views on regional and international issues of common interest, while emphasizing the importance of maintaining bilateral communication and coordination.

Boukadoum expressed “great satisfaction” with the common will to push forward these relations.

The Algerian-Libyan Economic Forum was held on Sunday in Algiers and brought together 500 businessmen and contractors from both countries to discuss investment opportunities.

Boukadoum also said his country was finalizing logistical and technical preparations for the reopening of the Debdeb-Ghadames border crossing with Libya.

Both FMs discussed “measures to overcome obstacles facing investors, develop commercial and economic exchanges, including the acceleration of the reopening of the Debdeb-Ghadames border crossing.”

“The fraternal and neighborliness ties have enshrined the values of understanding and solidarity as constants in our bilateral relations,” Boukadoum stressed, hailing the Libyan people’s support for Algerians during the liberation revolution.

Mangoush, for her part, praised Algeria’s efforts and steady role to preserve Libya’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as its unlimited solidarity to achieve national reconciliation.

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Libya's Anti-NGO Push Seen as Diversion from Internal Failures, Analysts Say

Head of Libya's Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah - File Photo
Head of Libya's Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah - File Photo
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Libya's Anti-NGO Push Seen as Diversion from Internal Failures, Analysts Say

Head of Libya's Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah - File Photo
Head of Libya's Government of National Unity Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah - File Photo

Libya's suspension of 10 international humanitarian groups, part of a broader crackdown on African migrants, is aimed at masking domestic failures and securing external concessions, particularly from Europe, analysts have said, AFP reported.

Libya's Tripoli-based authorities announced on Wednesday a decision to suspend the Norwegian Refugee Council, Doctors Without Borders (MSF), Terre des Hommes, CESVI and six other groups, accusing them of a plan to "settle migrants" from other parts of Africa in the country.

War-torn Libya is a key departure point on North Africa's Mediterranean coast for migrants, mainly from sub-Saharan African countries, risking dangerous sea voyages in the hope of reaching Europe.

Anas al-Gomati, director of the Tripoli-based Sadeq Institute think tank, said "this isn't about NGOs -- it's about creating enemies to distract from failures".

The UN-recognized government of Abdulhamid Dbeibah is "tapping into conservative anxieties while masking their inability to provide basic services", he told AFP.

The ultimate goal, according to Gomati, is to "extract concessions from Europe which, fearing potential migration surges, will offer new funding packages and prop up the government in Tripoli".

On Wednesday, Rome announced the allocation of 20 million euros to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to finance "voluntary repatriations" for 3,300 sub-Saharan migrants who arrived in Algeria, Tunisia and Libya.

"This isn't coincidence -- its coordination. The Libyan authorities shut down NGOs providing monitoring and protection (for migrants) precisely as Italy announces 20 million euros for 'voluntary' returns," said Gomati.

"Italy gets to claim they're funding 'voluntary' returns while Libya gets to demonstrate 'sovereignty', all while vulnerable migrants face extortion in detention before being labelled 'volunteers' for deportation."

Libya analyst Jalel Harchaoui noted that the Tripoli government is adopting a similar tone to Tunisian President Kais Saied, who in early 2023 denounced what he called "hordes of sub-Saharan migrants" who threatened to "change the country's demographic composition".

Harchaoui, of the London-based Royal United Services Institute, said Dbeibah was facing considerable difficulties, particularly in gaining access to public funds, and his once pragmatic relationship with the Haftar family in the east had deteriorated.

Following the NGO ban, aid groups have expressed concern for both their Libyan colleagues and the migrants who have been made more vulnerable in a country that, according to the IOM, is home to more than 700,000 residents from sub-Saharan countries.

The International Commission of Jurists on Friday condemned the "recent collective expulsions, arrests, violent attacks and the surge of hate speech, including that which constitutes incitement to violence, against migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in Libya".

The organization noted that the Libyan interior ministry has pledged "the deportation of 100,000 migrants every four months".