ALGIERS: The French and Algerian presidents have pledged to “relaunch” relations after a week-long diplomatic rift that led to the recall of the Algerian ambassador to Paris.
French President Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone Tuesday with his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune, discussing the coronavirus crisis and conflicts in Libya and the Sahel, said the Elysee Palace.
They spoke “in a spirit of friendship” and “mutual respect for the others’ sovereignty” and “affirmed their willingness to work together for the stability and security of the region,” it said.
“They also agreed to work toward a peaceful relationship and an ambitious relaunch of bilateral cooperation in all areas.”
Algeria said both sides agreed to “give a positive boost” to relations “on a sustainable foundation capable of guaranteeing mutual common interest and full respect for the distinctiveness and sovereignty of each of the two countries.”
The phone talk appeared to put an end to a diplomatic crisis triggered by the broadcast on French television of documentaries on the “Hirak” anti-government protest movement in Algeria.
Algiers had recalled its ambassador in Paris, Salah Lebdioui, for consultations, denouncing one of the films for “attacks on the Algerian people and its institutions,” including the army.
Earlier in the year, Tebboune had called for “mutual respect” in Franco-Algerian relations, saying his country “will not accept any interference or tutelage” from abroad.
The leaders agreed to coordinate on working to restore security and stability in the region in regards to Libya and the Sahel region, the Algerian statement added.
Algeria’s neighbor Libya has been mired in conflict since the 2011 ouster of dictator Muammar Qaddafi, with two rival administrations and multiple militias currently struggling for power.
France and five Sahel nations — including three of Algeria’s immediate neighbors — pledged earlier this year to bolster efforts against jihadists waging an increasingly deadly insurgency.
France, Algeria pledge to relaunch relations after rift
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France, Algeria pledge to relaunch relations after rift
- Macron spoke by phone Tuesday with his Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune
- They spoke “in a spirit of friendship” and “mutual respect for the others’ sovereignty”
Israeli settlers burn tents, vehicles in West Bank village
- Videos show masked men rampaging into the Palestinian village of Susiya near Hebron and burning vehicles and property
- Similar attacks have become common as settlers seek to control large swathes of land in the West Bank
SUSIYA, West Bank: Israeli settlers set fire to vehicles and tents in the Palestinian village of Susiya on Tuesday night, residents said, in the latest incident of settler violence against Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
Videos verified by Reuters showed a masked group of men, who residents said were Israeli settlers, approaching the village near the city of Hebron, and later burning vehicles and Palestinian property.
“They attack us almost every day, repeatedly, because we live near the main road...Last night they burned everywhere,” Halima Abu Eid, a Susiya resident told Reuters on Wednesday.
The Israeli military said they had dispatched soldiers to deal with reports of “deliberate burnings of Palestinian property” and had opened an investigation into the incident.
Violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank has increased sharply since the beginning of the war in Gaza in October 2023, with over 800 Palestinians displaced due to settler attacks in 2026 according to United Nations data.
Attacks where masked settlers arrive at night to destroy Palestinian property or attack residents have become common, as Israeli settlers seek to control large swathes of land in the West Bank.
An Israeli official previously blamed settler violence on a “fringe minority,” although Reuters reporting has shown well-organized plans to take Palestinian land in public settler social media channels.
The United Nations has documented at least 86 instances of settler violence from February 3 to 16, leading to the displacement of 146 Palestinians and the injury of 64.
Israeli indictments of settler violence are rare. At the end of 2025, Israeli monitoring group Yesh Din said of the hundreds of cases of settler violence it had documented since October 7, 2023, only 2 percent resulted in indictments. Israel’s far-right governing coalition has enabled the rapid spread of settlements, with some ministers openly stating they want to “bury” a Palestinian state.
Most world powers deem Israel’s settlements, on land it captured in a 1967 war, illegal, and numerous UN Security Council resolutions have called on Israel to halt all settlement activity.
Israel disputes the view that its settlements are unlawful and it cites biblical and historical ties to the land.
