The anger persists after the explanations of Hafid Derradji, accused of having insulted Morocco and the Moroccans last Thursday, the day of Algeria’s elimination from the Africa Cup of Nations (CAN 2021). The Moroccan Lawyers’ Club filed a complaint on Saturday, January 22 with the Attorney General of Qatar against the Algerian journalist from the beIN Sports channel.
The Algerian sports commentator for beIN Sports, Hafid Derradji, claims not to be the author of the insulting and hateful tweets against Morocco and Moroccan women, after Algeria’s elimination from the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON 2021).
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said that Spain has not played the role of mediator in the crisis between Algeria and Morocco because neither party has asked it to do so.
After the closure at the end of October of the Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline (GME) linking Algeria to Spain via Morocco, Medgaz has become Algeria’s only alternative to continue supplying gas to Spain. But with a smaller capacity than the GME, this gas pipeline was not fully meeting Spain’s needs. In a few weeks, the situation will change radically.
The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, praised the good migration cooperation with Morocco, which has prevented the entry of more than 1,000 migrants into Ceuta and Melilla on Christmas Day. He also wishes for a rapid resumption of relations with the kingdom.
Jeune Afrique has devoted an article to the recent accusations that Algeria has made against Morocco but also the World Bank , after the publication of the latest report by the multilateral institution on the economic situation of its eastern neighbor. The pan-African magazine sees it as a tendency of Algiers to raise the threat of the Moroccan external enemy to maintain control.
The diplomatic crisis between Spain and Morocco, opened since April with the reception of Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Polisario Front, in a hospital in Logroño, is not about to reach its epilogue. For the moment, no meeting is planned between King Mohammed VI and Pedro Sanchez for a high-level dialogue to ease tensions.
Spain is importing more liquefied natural gas than natural gas since the closure of the Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline at the end of October.
Staffan de Mistura , the new envoy of the United Nations (UN) arrived on Wednesday in Rabat. According to the spokesman of the institution, this visit to Morocco is the first stage of a regional tour that should also take him to Algeria.
Algeria accuses Morocco of wanting to "steal" raï, which would be an element of its heritage that it wants to register as world intangible heritage with UNESCO. The two countries continue to dispute the paternity of this popular musical genre.
After six months at the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the EU and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares has failed to resolve the crisis with Morocco. This is the finding made by the leader of the Popular Party, Valentina Martínez, who does not hide her "enormous disappointment".
Morocco received the first batch of the Chinese FD-2000B air defense system ordered in 2017 last December. Enough to compete with Algeria, the protector of the Polisario independence movement, which has cut ties with the kingdom, particularly because of the dispute over the Sahara, and has equipped itself with a comparable system from Russia.