Drone downing sparks diplomatic fallout between Algeria and Sahel countries

BAMAKO, Mali — Relations between Algeria and the military alliance of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger plunged to historic lows Monday as the two sides curtailed diplomatic ties in a spat over a downed drone last week.

Algeria says it shot down the Malian drone March 31 when it crossed into its air space near the border town of Tin Zaouatine. Mali denies the drone crossed the border, and the three-country bloc — the Alliance of Sahel States or AES — called the downing an ''irresponsible act'' that violated international law.

The three countries pulled their ambassadors from Algeria late Sunday, and Algeria followed suit Monday by withdrawing its ambassadors from those countries. Algeria and Mali also announced they were barring each other's planes from entering their airspace.

Algeria denied any wrongdoing in the drone incident and accused Mali of trying to redirect blame for its internal problems.

''The junta of putschists ruling in Mali is vainly attempting to make our country a scapegoat for the setbacks and woes of which the Malian people are paying the heaviest price,'' Algeria's foreign ministry said in a statement.

Mali, which uses drones against rebels in the region, has said that Algeria's actions proved that it ''sponsored international terrorism.''

The Malian government has pursued an aggressive campaign to combat rebels in its northern regions, where a mixture of Tuareg movements and transnational jihadi groups wield power. Amnesty International last year accused Mali's army of using drones against civilians in incidents in which the government claimed they were targeting jihadist groups.

Mali on Sunday said it had summoned the Algerian ambassador, withdrawn from a 15-year-old regional military group that includes Algeria, and planned to file a complaint with international bodies about the drone incident.

The escalation comes after months of rising tensions between Algeria and its southern neighbors, including Mali.

Since seizing control, the region's juntas have reshaped the balance of power in northwest Africa. Military leaders in the three AES countries — Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso — left the Economic Community of West African States, the nearly 50-year-old regional bloc known as ECOWAS. They created their own security partnership, the Alliance of Sahel States, in September last year.

Algeria has one of Africa's largest militaries and has long considered itself a regional power. The military leaders of the three Sahel nations have recently distanced themselves from Algeria as they have championed autonomy and sought new alliances, including with Russia.

Rida Lyammouri, a Sahel expert at the Morocco-based Policy Center for the New South, said the latest war of words was unlikely to escalate beyond that.

''Mali, and other AES members would not engage militarily against Algeria, and vice versa,'' he said, noting Mali did not fully control its border areas.

Algeria once served as a key mediator during more than a decade of conflict between Mali's government and Tuareg rebels. But the two countries have grown apart since a military junta staged coups in 2020 and 2021, putting military personnel in charge of Mali's key institutions.

Algeria has denounced the direction that Mali's new government has taken and its expanded efforts to quash rebellion in historically volatile parts of northern Mali. Afraid of the conflict spilling over the border, Algerian officials have denounced Mali's use of Russian mercenaries and armed drones near Tin Zaouatine, a border town in the north were the drone was found.

The Malian government did not recover the drone and videos seen on social media, posted by northern rebels, show them in possession of the remains of a Turkish made Akinci drone manufactured by Baykar downed in Tin Zaouatine. Mali purchased at least two from the Turkish company last year and has used them against armed separatists as well as fighters linked to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group.

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Metz reported from Rabat, Morocco and McMakin from Dakar, Senegal.