Senior US Official in Algeria for Talks on Tunisian Crisis, Terrorism Fight

US Acting Assistant Secretary Hood meets with Algerian Prime Minister Benaberrahmane. (US State Department of State for Near Eastern Affairs via Twitter)
US Acting Assistant Secretary Hood meets with Algerian Prime Minister Benaberrahmane. (US State Department of State for Near Eastern Affairs via Twitter)
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Senior US Official in Algeria for Talks on Tunisian Crisis, Terrorism Fight

US Acting Assistant Secretary Hood meets with Algerian Prime Minister Benaberrahmane. (US State Department of State for Near Eastern Affairs via Twitter)
US Acting Assistant Secretary Hood meets with Algerian Prime Minister Benaberrahmane. (US State Department of State for Near Eastern Affairs via Twitter)

US Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Joey Hood discussed with Algerian officials on Monday the developments in neighboring Tunisia following President Kais Saied’s decision to sack the government and suspend parliament.

Earlier, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune had received a phone call from Saied to tackle developments in Tunisia.

“The two presidents also addressed the prospects for Algerian-Tunisian relations and the ways and means of their consolidation,” said a statement from the Algerian presidency.

Meanwhile, Hood was received by Algeria’s Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra on Sunday, according to an Algerian foreign ministry statement.

The pair discussed “prospects for the promotion of peaceful political solutions to the various crises undermining the peace and security in North Africa and the Middle East”, it said. They also touched on the fight “against terrorism in the Sahel” and “the situation in Libya, Mali and Western Sahara."

Hood also “had fruitful discussions” with Prime Minister Ayman Benabderrahmane, the US embassy said.

Sources revealed that Algeria and the US are keen on the Libyans resolving their problems through political means. They also discussed the latest talks between Washington and Ankara on the withdrawal of Turkish forces from Libya.

Hood praised the key role Algeria plays in maintaining stability in the region.

His two-day visit is part of a tour in the Middle East and North Africa that started on July 24 and includes stops in Morocco and Kuwait.



Gaza Rescuers Say 72 Killed by Israeli Fire

Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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Gaza Rescuers Say 72 Killed by Israeli Fire

Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Smoke billows after an Israeli strike in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on June 19, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Gaza's civil defense agency said Israeli fire killed at least 72 people in the Palestinian territory on Thursday, including 21 who had gathered to receive aid in central and southern Gaza.

Updating an earlier figure, civil defense spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP the death toll had risen to 72, "due to the ongoing Israeli bombardment on the Gaza Strip since dawn today -- 21 of them were waiting for aid.”

The Israeli army told AFP that troops had fired "warning shots" at "suspects" approaching them in the Netzarim area where the civil defense agency said 15 people were killed waiting for aid, but that it was "not aware of any injured individuals.”