عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Algeria Will Again Send an Ambassador to Spain After 19-Month Diplomatic Crisis

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez
TT
TT

Algeria Will Again Send an Ambassador to Spain After 19-Month Diplomatic Crisis

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez

A breakthrough in the strained relations between Algeria and Spain is looming after reports that Algiers plans to send a new ambassador to Madrid, ending a 19-month diplomatic crisis.

In March, Algeria recalled its ambassador from Madrid after the latter backed Morocco’s plan giving autonomy to the former Spanish colony to solve the Western Sahara conflict.

Senior Algerian political sources said the two countries are in the process of resolving their crisis, adding that their relations are about to return to normal.

Last year, Algeria decided to suspend foreign trade in products and services with Spain and it suspended a 20-year-old friendship treaty with Spain that committed the two sides to cooperation in controlling migration flows.

Algeria has already announced that it is only willing to resume foreign trade with Spain and restore the 20-year-old friendship treaty if Madrid again adopts a neutral stance towards the Sahara conflict.

The same sources did not clarify whether this condition had been fulfilled now that the two countries moved to restore their diplomatic relations.

Meanwhile, Spain’s El Confidencial newspaper wrote on Thursday that Algeria is ready to re-establishing full diplomatic relations with the European country 19 months after it has summoned Said Moussi, its ambassador to Spain, back for consultations over Madrid's comments on Western Sahara.

Two months after this decision, Algeria has selected Moussi as its new ambassador to France, keeping the post of ambassador in Madrid vacant.

But in recent days, the Algerian authorities have announced some reshuffle in the diplomatic corps, most notably the appointment of former foreign minister Sabri Boukadoum as ambassador to Washington.

As part of this new diplomatic rearrangement, sources said former ambassador to Guinea, Abdel Fattah Daghmoum, has been appointed as the new ambassador to Madrid.

Head of Algerian-Spanish Circle of Commerce and Industry (CCIAE) Djamal Eddine Bouabdallah told media outlets that the breakthrough in Spanish-Algerian relations is due to contacts made by delegations of the two countries on the sidelines of their participation in the meetings of UN General Assembly in New York last September.

He said a gradual restoration of relations between the two countries is on the way, adding that several factors have contributed positively to this progress.

Government reports said that Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez' speech at the United Nations on September 22 was a milestone for Algeria, and “a significant change of Madrid's last position on the Sahara issue.”

Sanchez said his country supports a “mutually acceptable political solution” regarding Western Sahara.

“We fully support the work of the UN Secretary Special Envoy, work that we deem to be absolutely crucial,” Sanchez said during his speech to the United Nations General Assembly.

He added, “Spain will also continue to support the Sahrawi population in the refugee camps as it always has done, as the main international donor of humanitarian assistance in this context.”

Algerians appreciated the fact that Sanchez spoke of seeking a solution to the Sahara conflict without mentioning the Moroccan proposal for autonomy.

Also, reports said that Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune had told his ministers last September that Spain “began to return to the European position regarding the Sahara issue,” and which “supports the United Nations’ efforts in favor of a political process that will help reach a just and lasting political solution acceptable to all parties.”

The rift in relations between the two Mediterranean neighbors already caused huge losses to institutions and businessmen. Since the beginning of the crisis until mid-2023, the losses are estimated by activists in the field of export and import at about one billion euros.

This also resulted in a severe shortage of several materials and goods in the Algerian market, and has affected many sectors in Spain, including the food industry and livestock meat, which represent important proportions of the turnover of Spanish companies with the Algerian market.

With the exception of gas supplies linked to long-term contracts between both countries, Algeria froze all economic exchanges with Spain, whose exports to Algeria before the political crisis was worth about 3 billion euros.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Israel Tells Washington It Is Ready to Join War Against Iran Immediately

US Central Command commander Admiral Brad Cooper visits Israel on Sunday at the invitation of Israeli military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir to strengthen military coordination and the defense partnership between the two sides. (Israeli military/X)
US Central Command commander Admiral Brad Cooper visits Israel on Sunday at the invitation of Israeli military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir to strengthen military coordination and the defense partnership between the two sides. (Israeli military/X)
TT
TT

Israel Tells Washington It Is Ready to Join War Against Iran Immediately

US Central Command commander Admiral Brad Cooper visits Israel on Sunday at the invitation of Israeli military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir to strengthen military coordination and the defense partnership between the two sides. (Israeli military/X)
US Central Command commander Admiral Brad Cooper visits Israel on Sunday at the invitation of Israeli military Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir to strengthen military coordination and the defense partnership between the two sides. (Israeli military/X)

A military spokesperson in Tel Aviv said on Wednesday that the Israeli army was on high alert and ready to join the war alongside the US military against Iran as soon as it received orders from the government.

The Walla news site said the preparations had been in place since the first day of the ceasefire because Israel did not trust Iranian promises and viewed them as mere maneuvers.

“The Iranian leadership, intoxicated by an imagined victory, is not making the responsible calculations required of any government before going to war. It is acting arrogantly, as though it won the war, and is trying to blackmail the United States,” if added, noting that Israel had expected US President Donald Trump’s patience with Tehran to run out.

Walla also said the Israeli army had remained in close contact with US Central Command, or CENTCOM, to discuss what it described as the high likelihood of a resumption of the war, review the experience of the two previous wars in June 2025 and February 2026, and draw lessons from them to improve performance and prepare a new target bank for a third war that Israel sees as inevitable.

The most recent coordination meeting between the two commands was held at the end of last week in preparation for a scenario in which the confrontations resume.

Iranian actions had topped the agenda of a visit that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had been scheduled to make on Wednesday before canceling it at the last minute, causing significant embarrassment in Tel Aviv. A senior political source close to Netanyahu said Hegseth had been due to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his counterpart, Defense Minister Israel Katz.

According to the sources, one of the aims of the visit was to calm Israeli concerns over the possible sale of advanced F-35 stealth fighter jets to Türkiye. Israel is deeply concerned by the move, and some officials have begun mobilizing pressure in Congress to block its approval.

According to a report by Israel’s Channel 12, Israeli security agencies warn that Türkiye’s possession of advanced US stealth fighter jets, namely the F-35, could harm what Tel Aviv describes as the Israeli air force’s “qualitative edge” in the Middle East and restrict its ability to operate in arenas Israel considers central, including Iran, Syria, Lebanon and the wider eastern Mediterranean.

In an interview with CNN, Netanyahu said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was “not exactly a model ally of the United States,” adding that he “threatens to destroy my country, the only Jewish state,” according to Netanyahu. Israel is currently the only country in the Middle East operating F-35 aircraft, the most advanced fighter jet in the US arsenal.

A report by Yedioth Ahronoth on Wednesday said friction between Israel and Türkiye was no longer limited to political or rhetorical disputes and now extended to four main arenas of concern to Israel’s security establishment.

The first arena is the negotiations with Iran, where Israel views Türkiye’s role as an attempt to prevent Tehran’s defeat in a way that would lead to wider Israeli dominance in the region.

The second arena relates to the Gaza Strip. The report points to Türkiye’s support for Hamas and claims that an arm of the movement operates from inside Türkiye and manages activities against Israel from there.

The third arena is Syria, where Israel is concerned by Turkish efforts to expand its influence after the changes the country has undergone.

According to Channel 12, the Israeli air force is working to prevent the consolidation of a Turkish foothold in Syria, including through repeated strikes on the T4 base. Israel is also seeking to prevent Ankara from arming the Syrian army with drones and air defense systems.

The fourth arena, which the report says is taking shape, is the eastern Mediterranean maritime front. Israel fears an expanding Turkish presence in an area Tel Aviv views as vital to its military and economic activity and to its relations with Greece and Cyprus.

According to the report, Türkiye is already developing advanced military industries, including defense systems and ballistic missiles, and is seeking to build its own stealth fighter, called Kaan.

But the project faces major difficulties, particularly over engines, as Türkiye does not yet have the independent capacity to develop an engine suitable for this type of aircraft, prompting it to request US-made F110 engines.

But the violation of the ceasefire between the United States and Iran has pushed this issue into the background, even for Israel.

It prefers to focus on what it has in common with the Americans, not on what divides it from them.

While Iran considered Israel’s continued military operations in Lebanon a violation of the US-Iranian agreement, Israel initiated a larger escalation in Lebanon in recent hours after Trump announced the cancellation of the ceasefire.

According to political sources in Tel Aviv, the escalation was not only a way to vent frustration over the anger caused by the halt to the war, but also a means of dragging the Revolutionary Guards leadership into the war and blowing up the negotiations entirely.

Arab World

Could Qaani’s Brief Appearance Affect Al-Zaidi’s Washington Visit?

A still image taken from a video shows Esmail Qaani, right, believed to be at Najaf airport in Iraq. (Shafaq News)
A still image taken from a video shows Esmail Qaani, right, believed to be at Najaf airport in Iraq. (Shafaq News)
TT
TT

Could Qaani’s Brief Appearance Affect Al-Zaidi’s Washington Visit?

A still image taken from a video shows Esmail Qaani, right, believed to be at Najaf airport in Iraq. (Shafaq News)
A still image taken from a video shows Esmail Qaani, right, believed to be at Najaf airport in Iraq. (Shafaq News)

The limited appearance of Esmail Qaani, commander of the Quds Force, during the funeral procession for Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the Iraqi city of Najaf on Wednesday has once again drawn attention to the complex nature of relations between Baghdad and Tehran.

The development comes as Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi prepares to visit Washington later this month, a trip that observers see as a fresh test of his government's ability to balance its relations with the United States and Iran.

Qaani appeared in Iraq in a short video clip that could not be independently verified. The footage, which lasted only a few minutes, showed him beside an Iranian aircraft on the tarmac at Najaf Airport.

The scene was marked by caution and brevity, in contrast to the presence of other Iranian officials at the funeral, including Mohsen Rezaei, an adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, who were seen moving freely around the city.

Observers said the nature of Qaani's appearance may reflect an attempt to maintain a symbolic presence without displaying broad public engagement, given the sensitivity of Baghdad's current political moment.

Iraqi-Iranian tensions

Iraqi sources in recent days raised expectations about al-Zaidi’s planned visit to Washington, while other sources reported tensions at a meeting between him and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi during Araghchi’s visit to Baghdad last week.

Other sources said Baghdad had asked Tehran not to send Qaani to the funeral before images emerged showing him alongside other Iranian military officials.

The Iraqi request could not be independently confirmed. But Qaani’s appearance revived debate over the limits of Iranian influence in Iraq, especially as al-Zaidi’s government moves to reorganize internal files that touch on political forces and armed factions historically linked to Tehran.

Asharq al-Awsat previously reported, citing sources, that Iraq’s government had asked Tehran to use diplomatic channels to arrange visits by its officials and avoid secret trips.

Al-Zaidi’s Washington visit comes at a sensitive time.

Baghdad is trying to build a new relationship with the US administration as tensions persist between Washington and Tehran.

The two sides had been engaged in fragile de-escalation talks until those talks stopped and intermittent military strikes resumed.

Iraq now faces the challenge of preserving a delicate balance between the two sides and preventing the country from becoming a battlefield for rival allies.

Al-Zaidi, who came to office amid complex domestic calculations, is facing growing pressure from some parties in the Coordination Framework after his government moved on corruption-related files.

His supporters see the steps as an attempt to restore the authority of state institutions. His opponents see them as a potential shift in the balance of power inside Iraq’s political system.

Parties move to withdraw support

Particular attention is focused on the “Dawn Operation,” which has been linked to security and judicial measures against figures accused of corruption.

An Iraqi politician, who requested anonymity, said the operation had alarmed political parties that believed al-Zaidi’s selection, as a figure not fully aligned with any one side, would help contain disputes inside the Coordination Framework.

The politician told Asharq al-Awsat that the use of Counter-Terrorism Service units, partly trained by US forces, had deepened the sensitivity of the moment.

The service is viewed differently from the Popular Mobilization Forces, which retain ideological and organizational links with political forces and armed factions.

People close to al-Zaidi say the prime minister wants to arrive in Washington with domestic leverage, including what his supporters see as an early success in confronting corruption files.

But opposition from senior figures in the Coordination Framework, at least three of whom have boycotted government-linked meetings, suggests they are moving to withdraw support for the anti-corruption plan.

Iraqi analysts say the Washington visit could become a test of the country’s internal balance of power. Some believe al-Zaidi is trying to avoid a direct clash with forces close to Iran before the trip, while keeping wider options open if he secures US support.

Observers said Qaani’s presence at the funeral, despite the controversy surrounding it, does not necessarily indicate a direct confrontation between Baghdad and Tehran.

But it does signal a more delicate phase in managing relations between the two countries, as Iraq’s government tries to assert the independence of its political decision-making without severing regional ties.

Arab World

Israel Army Says Troops Capture Hezbollah Fighter, Strike Kills 2 in Lebanon

Smoke rises in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)
Smoke rises in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)
TT
TT

Israel Army Says Troops Capture Hezbollah Fighter, Strike Kills 2 in Lebanon

Smoke rises in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)
Smoke rises in Lebanon as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, July 5, 2026. (Reuters)

The Israeli military on Wednesday said its troops had seized a Hezbollah fighter during an encounter in southern Lebanon a day earlier and transferred him to Israel for questioning.

The fighter was captured in the Bint Jbeil area on Tuesday, where Israeli troops clashed with Hezbollah combatants.

"The apprehended terrorist is a member of Hezbollah's Radwan Force ... responsible for carrying out attacks against Israeli soldiers and Israeli civilians throughout the war," the military said in a statement, adding that he had been brought to Israel.

Meanwhile, an Israeli strike on southern Lebanon killed two people on Wednesday, Lebanese state media reported, the latest attack despite a ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war.

"Two young men were martyred after being targeted by an enemy drone... while they were walking in the vicinity of Ghandour Hospital in Nabatieh al-Fawqa," Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said, two days after a strike on the same town killed four civilians including a school principal.

Israel has kept up intermittent strikes on south Lebanon, despite a two-week-old truce, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah sites and operatives.

Both sides accuse each other of violating the ceasefire.

Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the wider Middle East war with rocket attacks on Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, in US-Israeli strikes.

Last month, Israel and Lebanon signed a US-mediated agreement aimed at paving the way for a permanent end to hostilities.

Israeli forces remain deployed in what the military describes as a security zone extending roughly 10 kilometers (six miles) into Lebanese territory.

Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have repeatedly said that forces would remain in the occupied area "as long as necessary" to protect communities in northern Israel.

Lebanese authorities say Israeli attacks since March 2 have killed around 4,300 people.

The Israeli military says it has lost 38 soldiers and a civilian contractor in the fighting in southern Lebanon over the same period.