Concordant sources have reported that Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has decided to close Algerian airspace to all French military aircraft heading to the Sahel region as part of Operation Barkhane.
The sources have stressed that the crossing of French military aircraft to the Sahel region through the Algerian airspace “is a privilege granted to France from the reign of former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, and was valid for 4 years”.
This decision comes after controversial declarations awarded to French President Emmanuel Macron, which Algeria has described as interference in its internal affairs.
The French newspaper “Le Monde” published statements by President Macron, in which he indicated that his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, “is stuck in a very difficult diet”.
In his statements, Macron also mentioned the historic past of France in Algeria, stressing that he wanted to rewrite Algerian history both in Arabic and in Berber “to denounce the falsification of the facts by the Turks who rewrite history”.
The French president also wondered about the existence of an “Algerian nation before French colonialism”, stressing the need to approach this question in order to achieve “reconciliation between the two peoples”.
In response, Algiers announced yesterday, Saturday, the “immediate recall for consultation” of his ambassador to Paris, explaining this decision by his “categorical rejection” of declarations attributed to French President Emmanuel Macron.
