Algeria ends visa-free travel for Moroccan nationals

Algerian authorities reinstated visa requirements for Moroccan nationals on Thursday, according to the state news agency APS.

The decision comes amid accusations that Morocco has been exploiting visa-free entry to facilitate cross-border criminal activities. This move marks a new escalation in tensions with Rabat.

The two nations had mutually lifted visa requirements roughly 20 years ago, but Morocco has yet to respond to the reinstatement, Reuters reported.

At the core of the strained relations is the longstanding dispute over Western Sahara. The United Nations considers Western Sahara a “non-self-governing territory,” with Morocco controlling around 80% of the region. Meanwhile, Algeria supports and hosts the Polisario Front, a movement advocating for Western Sahara’s independence.

On Thursday, Algeria accused Morocco of exploiting the visa-free entry agreement to orchestrate extensive networks of organized crime, including drug and human trafficking, illegal immigration, and espionage. This claim was made in a Foreign Ministry statement cited by the state news agency APS.

The statement further alleged that Morocco had sent “Zionist” spies using Moroccan passports to enter Algerian territory. However, no evidence was provided to substantiate these serious accusations.

In 2021, Algeria severed diplomatic relations with Morocco, accusing its neighbour of “hostile acts,” including supporting a separatist movement in the Kabylia region. The strained ties led Algeria to stop the flow of a gas pipeline to Spain that passed through Morocco, impose a ban on Moroccan aircraft crossing its airspace, and boycott Moroccan ports.

Morocco, in response, has repeatedly rejected these accusations. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said in 2023 that relations with Morocco had reached “the point of no return”.