Army Chief Calls for Thwarting Plots Targeting Algeria

Chanegriha visits the troops on Saturday. (Defense Ministry)
Chanegriha visits the troops on Saturday. (Defense Ministry)
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Army Chief Calls for Thwarting Plots Targeting Algeria

Chanegriha visits the troops on Saturday. (Defense Ministry)
Chanegriha visits the troops on Saturday. (Defense Ministry)

Chief of Staff of the Algerian army Lieutenant General Said Chanegriha called for thwarting attempts to undermine the country’s territorial and public unity.

He warned of the "chronic fragile security" in the region, as well as the expansion of terrorism in neighboring countries and transnational organized crime.

Chanegriha addressed military officers on Saturday during a visit to a military facility in southern Algeria.

He underlined the importance of unity between the people and army, which allowed Algeria to defeat the scourge of barbaric terrorism, advance and develop.

He pointed to promoters of recent frantic campaigns against Algeria in betrayal of their homeland.

His remarks were a reference to Algerian opposition figures who live abroad and belong to the Rachad movement, which Algeria deems a terrorist group and has issued international arrest warrants against its members.

Many people have been detained charges of belonging to the movement.

The government has also designated the Kabylie separatist group (MAK) as terrorist organization. It is working on deporting its leader, Ferhat Mhenni, from Paris where he is currently residing.

“While Algeria needs to strengthen its national unity and prioritize the national interest, these mercenaries seek to sow discord and division among people and between Algerians and their army,” Chanegriha stressed.

He urged the soldiers to serve their country, preserving its supreme interests and enhance its security, stability and sovereignty to build the new Algeria.



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".