Rabat – Algeria has announced the arrest of 77 people in what is described as a major operation against irregular migration. However, the only nationality disclosed as part of its operation was that of 67 Moroccans.
On Facebook, the country’s police said Oran police allegedly foiled a clandestine migration plan, arresting 10 organizers.
In what appeared as a muscle-showing operation, police alleged they arrested three organizers initially and 51 Moroccans who were in vehicles and a bus on the way to the “departure point” on one of Oran’s beaches. This came after an investigation to identify organizers of the alleged irregular migration attempt.
A raid on the residence allegedly used to shelter candidates for migration led to the arrest of seven additional organizers in addition to 16 Moroccans.
Algeria also claimed it seized money in Moroccan currency, which does not exceed MAD 1,000 or $100, as well as ten vehicles.
In its post on the alleged operation, footage showing dozens of Moroccan passports was also displayed publicly, with observers interpreting the move as a pointed message amid heightened political tension between Algeria and Morocco.
This is not an isolated case when Algeria arrests Moroccans or accuses them of similar charges.
In recent years, the regime has gone as far as announcing the killing of several Moroccans, accusing them of drug trafficking or threatening its security.
In 2023, Algerian coast guards opened fire, killing two Moroccans and detaining at least one other.
The victims were unarmed civilians on holiday. Due to bad weather, their jet skis accidentally drifted into Algerian waters.
In 2021, Algeria’s regime cut ties with Morocco, accusing Rabat of causing wildfires triggered by heatwaves during the summer in the Kabyle region.
Morocco denied the accusations, regretting Algeria’s unfounded allegations.
Rabat has also frequently called on Algeria to engage in dialogue to end the political stalemate between the two countries.
However, the regime continues to refuse to engage in a frank and direct dialogue, and continues to make similar allegations as well as interfering in Morocco’s domestic affairs.
Observers have long emphasized that Algeria’s acts stem from the momentum Morocco has been gaining at regional and international levels, strengthening its position as a strategic security partner and also in other dossiers like the Western Sahara dispute amid Algiers’ isolation.
Algeria supports Polisario, a separatist group challenging Morocco’s territorial integrity and sovereignty over its southern provinces in Western Sahara.
Morocco, however, has been strengthening its case as the international community continues to back the Moroccan Autonomy Plan as the most serious or the only feasible political framework able to end the dispute — dealing consistent blows to the separatist project the Algerian regime continues to back
