After Cutting Ties, Algeria Announces Closure of Airspace With Morocco

Algeria’s decision comes a month after it announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Morocco.

Rabat – The Algerian president’s office has just announced the closure of airspace with Morocco, noting the decision will enter into force starting today.

In a statement on Twitter, the president’s office said the decision was taken during a meeting of Algeria’s Supreme Security Council.

The council took the decision in view of the “continued Moroccan provocations and hostile practices,” the statement said.

The decision included closure of Algerian airspace to all Moroccan civil and military planes, meaning all flights bearing a Moroccan registration number are effectively banned from entering Algerian airspace .

As the move comes nearly a month after Algiers announced its decision to cut ties with Rabat, it is yet another signal of Algeria’s determination to escalate tensions with its Western neighbor.

On August 24, Algeria’s foreign minister relayed his country’s sudden decision to sever all ties with Morocco, alleging that the Moroccan government had a hand in the wildfires that swept through the Kabylie region in northern Algeria this past August.

Rabat rejected the accusations, saying it regretted the “unilateral and unjustified” move from Algeria.

Despite the ongoing crisis between the two North African neighbors, Morocco has maintained its commitment to remain a “credible and loyal partner for the Algerian people.”

But with the Algerian politico-military establishment showing no sign of relenting in its fixation on Morocco, it remains to  be seen whether Rabat will maintain its overly diplomatic response to its eastern neighbor’s continued theatrics.