The move comes after Algeria protests after the detention of Algerian consul agents suspected of being involved in the invitation of Algerian opposition activists, according to Reuters. France later said that Algeria had ousted 12 diplomatic staff.
Algerian Foreign Ministry said it had declared 12 Persona Non Gratas after “deprecating conduct” that denounced French home minister Bruno Leciroe after being arrested in France of French consulate officials.
The ministry defended the decision as “sovereignty” and described the official’s arrest as “the result of the French Minister of Home Affairs’ negative, tragic, and constant attitude towards Algeria.”
Algeria said the expulsion came after the “magnificent and isolated arrest” of consul agents in France.
French Foreign Minister Jeannoel Barott previously said the order of expulsion was linked to the arrest of three Algerians in France.
12 includes some members of the French Ministry of Interior, diplomatic sources said.
Embassies around the world include security guards listed as members of the mission’s diplomatic staff.
For decades, relations between France and Algeria have been experiencing diplomatic upheavals, with Monday’s queue coming at a delicate period of relationships highlighting the difficulties of repairing them.
Despite the new tensions, French diplomatic sources said “contact is maintained” and that Paris hopes to “return to ease tensions” with Algeria.
MNA