Western Sahara conflict
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Aziza Brahim's "Mawja"
The voice of Western Sahara
Aziza Brahim's childhood as a Sahrawi refugee in Algeria naturally shaped her music, but as her latest album, "Mawja" shows, while she has not forgotten where she comes from, she has long since tuned her ears to a world beyond the camp perimeters
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Migrant destination Europe
EU gatekeeper Morocco leverages its own interests
Morocco is intensifying its gatekeeper role in EU migration, stopping 87,000 migrants in 2023. Key to the deal is European acceptance of Morocco's claim to disputed Western Sahara
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Italy and Algeria cooperate on energy
Algiers is banking on Europe's gas rush
Following the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's visit to Algeria, both countries are seeking to expand their energy cooperation. This will, however, only further cement Algiers' dependence on the gas rush. By Sofian Philip Naceur
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The EU's diplomatic dilemma
Morocco and Algeria square off over Western Sahara
Since Spain reversed its position on Western Sahara in favour of Morocco’s autonomy plan, Algeria has suspended its long-standing friendship treaty with Madrid. The diplomatic spat raises questions about the future of Moroccan and Algerian relations with EU member states, writes Mohamed Al-Fawiris
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Algeria at 60
No more lethargy – Algiers’ passive foreign policy is over
For the first time since 1989, Algeria‘s authoritarian regime has sent a military parade marching through Algiers. A formidable show of strength designed to impress rival regional powers, the event also sought to highlight the country’s own stance on Israel and Palestine. By Sofian Philip Naceur
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Algeria‘s gas reserves
Is defending the environment terrorism?
Algeria‘s regime is again cracking down on anti-fracking activists and the unemployed in the country‘s south. Yet EU countries remain keen to scale up their energy cooperation with Algiers, despite the reprisals faced by environmentalists. By Sofian Philip Naceur
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Morocco and Algeria
A rivalry stretching back decades
Algeria's decision to unilaterally sever diplomatic ties with Morocco in August 2021 – days after the presidency announced in a statement their relations would be reviewed – was all but surprising. The hostility and rivalry between the two neighbouring countries go back years. By Ilham Rachidi
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Western Sahara
Is a gas crisis with Algeria on the horizon for Spain?
Madrid's about-face on the Western Sahara conflict has enraged Algeria. Trade relations have been frozen unilaterally and a cut in gas supplies to Europe could be in the pipeline. By Ralph Schulze
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Western Sahara conflict
"One day we will be free"
Sultana Khaya, 41, has been peacefully resisting the Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara for many years. Because of her campaign to assert the self-determination of the Sahrawi people, she was assaulted and raped. She has been under house arrest for over a year. Interview by Elisa Rheinheimer
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Morocco and Spain
What price Madrid and Rabat's "historic" reconciliation?
Since Spain abandoned its traditional neutrality towards the conflict in Western Sahara, Morocco has announced a "new phase" in relations between the two countries. But what is the price of Spain's support for autonomy in the Sahara? Mohamed Taifouri analyses the situation for Qantara
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Arabs attend Negev summit
Israel moves centre-stage in the Middle East
A straightforward message emerged from last week’s meeting in the Negev desert of the foreign ministers of four Arab countries, Israel and the United States: Israel is key to the security of Gulf autocracies and continued U.S. engagement in the Middle East. By James M. Dorsey
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Underage migrants stranded in Spain
The lost children of Ceuta and the "warehouses of shame"
Hundreds of minors are stranded in the Spanish enclave. They can neither return to Morocco nor travel on to Europe. Many are hiding out of mistrust of the police. Karin Janker reports from Madrid