March 6, 2024Algeria is concerned over growing hostility with Mali that could threaten the security along their 850-mile border, as well as Algiers’ influence over the Sahel. Tuareg tribes, the majority of whom live in the north of Mali as well as in neighboring countries, had sought in 2012 to establish an independent state in that region. Their joining was the main reason France accepted at the time the request by Mali to send in troops. Several other agreements were negotiated between the parties over the years, but it was the Algiers Accord that became the principal reference point, even though it was never fully respected. The transition government, set up by the military after its 2020 coup d’etat, accepted the Algiers Accord as a basis for continued negotiations up until last month.

Source: The North Africa Journal March 06, 2024 05:40 UTC