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Algerian President’s Visit to Paris Postponed

The sculpture of Emir Abdelkader located in Amboise, France [Guillaume Souvant/AFP]
The sculpture of Emir Abdelkader located in Amboise, France [Guillaume Souvant/AFP]
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Algerian President’s Visit to Paris Postponed

The sculpture of Emir Abdelkader located in Amboise, France [Guillaume Souvant/AFP]
The sculpture of Emir Abdelkader located in Amboise, France [Guillaume Souvant/AFP]

A visit by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to Paris was postponed, French newspaper Le Figaro cited sources as saying.

According to information reported by the newspaper, the symbolic trip of the Algerian president, which was to take place on May 2- 3, has been postponed by mutual agreement without new dates being set.

Le Figaro added that the postponement was confirmed by French and Algerian sources who did not specify the reasons, but pointed to a “lack of preparation of files”.

Anne Marie Descôtes, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, traveled to Algiers on Sunday, where she met with her Algerian counterpart, Ammar Ballani, to put the final touches on the preparations for the visit.

However, many observers had expected the trip to be adjourned due to the protests taking place in France over the government’s pension reforms.

French newspaper L’Opinion reported on Saturday that the visit was expected to take place between May 2 and 5, adding that the most important items on its agenda would include a speech that Tebboune would deliver before the National Assembly, over bilateral economic ties.

The speech was also expected to deal with the human dimension of the relations between the two countries, which is represented by the millions of Algerians residing in France, the French of Algerian origin, and generations of immigrants’ children.

Algeria is calling for greater flexibility in the French visa system, and for activating the agreement on the movement of persons between the two countries that dates back to 1968, which gives preference to Algerians wishing to pursue studies in French universities.

The agenda, which was agreed upon by senior officials in the two countries, includes a visit by Tebboune and French President Emmanuel Macron to the Amboise Palace in the heart of France, the location of a steel structure representing Emir Abdelkader, who was imprisoned in the same place in the 19th century, after popular revolutions he waged against the French invasion of Algeria.

Prince Abdelkader is considered the founder of the modern Algerian state and a symbol of tolerance between religions. He was known for defending the Christians of Syria in 1860 against persecution.

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Syria Authorities Say Torched 1 Million Captagon Pills

A man throws a bag onto a pile of burning illicit drugs, as Syria's new authorities burn drugs reportedly seized from a security branch, in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (AFP)
A man throws a bag onto a pile of burning illicit drugs, as Syria's new authorities burn drugs reportedly seized from a security branch, in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (AFP)
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Syria Authorities Say Torched 1 Million Captagon Pills

A man throws a bag onto a pile of burning illicit drugs, as Syria's new authorities burn drugs reportedly seized from a security branch, in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (AFP)
A man throws a bag onto a pile of burning illicit drugs, as Syria's new authorities burn drugs reportedly seized from a security branch, in Damascus on December 25, 2024. (AFP)

Syria's new authorities torched a large stockpile of drugs on Wednesday, two security officials told AFP, including one million pills of captagon, whose industrial-scale production flourished under ousted president Bashar al-Assad.

Captagon is a banned amphetamine-like stimulant that became Syria's largest export during the country's more than 13-year civil war, effectively turning it into a narco state under Assad.

"We found a large quantity of captagon, around one million pills," said a balaclava-wearing member of the security forces, who asked to be identified only by his first name, Osama, and whose khaki uniform bore a "public security" patch.

An AFP journalist saw forces pour fuel over and set fire to a cache of cannabis, the painkiller tramadol, and around 50 bags of pink and yellow captagon pills in a security compound formerly belonging to Assad's forces in the capital's Kafr Sousa district.

Captagon has flooded the black market across the region in recent years.

"The security forces of the new government discovered a drug warehouse as they were inspecting the security quarter," said another member of the security forces, who identified himself as Hamza.

Authorities destroyed the stocks of alcohol, cannabis, captagon and hashish in order to "protect Syrian society" and "cut off smuggling routes used by Assad family businesses", he added.

- Manufacturing sites -

Since an opposition alliance toppled Assad on December 8 after a lightning offensive, Syria's new authorities have said massive quantities of captagon have been found in former government sites around the country, including security branches.

AFP journalists in Syria have seen fighters from the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group set fire to what they said were stashes of captagon found at facilities once operated by Assad's forces.

Security force member Hamza confirmed Wednesday that "this is not the first initiative of its kind -- the security services, in a number of locations, have found other warehouses... and drug manufacturing sites and destroyed them in the appropriate manner".

Maher al-Assad, a military commander and the brother of Bashar al-Assad, is widely accused of being the power behind the lucrative captagon trade.

Experts believe Syria's former leader used the threat of drug-fueled unrest to put pressure on Arab governments.

Jordan in recent years has cracked down on the smuggling of weapons and drugs including captagon along its 375-kilometer (230-mile) border with Syria.