Franco-Algerian Academic Calls Sahara ’Moroccan Territory’, Urges Algeria-Morocco Reconciliation

"It’s just a remnant of the Cold War, which of course includes the fact that Algeria has supported the Sahrawis in the desire for independence of the Western Sahara, which is a Moroccan territory no matter what we say today. I am Algerian and I am the first to tell you that of course, it is a Moroccan territory," said the academic in his video titled "Why is Algeria like Novigrad?", published on his YouTube channel on May 14.

These statements come at a time when diplomatic relations between Algeria and Morocco are once again strained. The contentious issue is the Sahara. For Aberkane, if Algeria were to continue to contest Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, the Algerian government should also cede its Southern Sahara to the Tuaregs. According to the writer’s explanations, the Tuaregs, a nomadic Berber people, live throughout the Sahara desert in North Africa, including in parts of Algeria, Libya, Mali, Chad and Niger.

The essayist highlights the closure of borders between the two countries, which is "comparable to North Korea and South Korea." Idriss Aberkane insists on reconciliation between the two countries. He hammers that "Algeria must think like a 21st century country" and that "the only thing that can dictate reconciliation with Morocco [remains] the projection towards the future."