[This is a roundup of news articles and other materials circulating on the Maghreb and reflects a wide variety of opinions. It does not reflect the views of the Maghreb Page Editors or of Jadaliyya. You may send your own recommendations for inclusion in each roundup to maghreb@jadaliyya.com]
Algeria
Algeria hosted meeting between North Korean and South Korean Officials South Korea’s ambassador to Algeria, Park Sang Jin, invited his North Korean counterpart to a private meeting in his home in Algiers on 1 May, highlighting Algeria’s potential role in mediating between the countries as one of the few states to maintain diplomatic relations with North Korea.
Des roquettes d’artillerie découvertes à la frontière algéro-malienne The Algerian army uncovers a stash of artillery rockets along the Algerian-Malian border.
الجزائر – الآلاف يشاركون في مسيرة تنسيقية عمال سيفيتال ونواب يعدون بنقل القضية إلى البرلمان Thousands of workers from Béjaïa protest, demanding the government allow the opening of a Cevital seed-crushing plant.
Algeria Remains Africa's Biggest Military Spender Despite a recent decline, Algeria spends ten billion dollars on importing military equipment, more than any other country in Africa and three times as much as Morocco, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SPRI).
Les affres subies par le peuple algérien Director Saïd Oulmi premiers his documentary on the French colonial concentration camps in Algeria, where nearly three million Algerians were rounded up beginning in 1955.
Malgré les contraintes et les difficultés, les médecins résidents refusent d’abdiquer Despite widespread arrests, the Comité Autonome des Médecins Résidents Algériens (CAMRA) has continued its strike, which as so far, lasted nearly six months.
U.N. criticizes Algeria for mass deportations and migrants The United Nations (UN) calls for Algeria to stop expelling sub-Saharan migrants, particularly from Mali and Niger, while Algeria called in turn for UN support to handle the influx of migrants.
Repatriation of migrants: Algeria expresses strong disapproval of OHCHR spokesperson's remarks Algeria pushes back against UN condemnation of repatriation of migrants by calling the remarks “unacceptable” and “unfounded.”
مشروع قانون المالية التكميلي المعدل The new version of the 2018 Supplementary Finance Bill, which was approved on 16 May, increases fees for documents such as passports and driver’s licenses - in some cases, almost doubling the fee.
هل يتمكن فنانو الجزائر من ترويج إبداعاتهم The Spring of the Arts Festival marks the first major art market in Algeria, featuring over five hundred works of art from more than 180 painters.
Libya
Libya Quartet backs elections this year, offers observers The Quartet attempting to help stabilize Libya, which includes the European Union, the African Union, the Arab League, and the United Nations, called for respect and support for the upcoming elections.
حرس السواحل الليبي: نواجه صعوبات في عمليات إنقاذ وانتشال المهاجرين Libya’s Coast Guard expresses the difficulties it faces in rescuing migrants off its Mediterranean coast.
Libya to return bodies of 20 beheaded Egyptians Libya announces it will return the bodies of twenty Christian Egyptians executed by the Islamic State.
Le maréchal libyen Khalifa Haftar visé par une plainte à Paris pour actes de barbarie Libyan citizen Ali Hamza files a legal complaint in France against Khalifa Haftar, head of the Libyan National Army, accusing him of “torture and barbaric acts.”
A National Conference for Libya's Future United Nations Special Envoy, Ghassan Salame, has become more indecisive on how to implement the plan and needs to focus on the task of establishing a National Conference for Libya this year.
قوات حفتر في ليبيا تتقدم باتجاه مدينة درنة الخاضعة للمعارضة Haftar’s forces make advances in the opposition-held Derna.
En Libye, les failles du « pacte sécuritaire » de Tripoli The Islamic State claims responsibility for an attack on the High Electoral Commission in Tripoli that killed fourteen people.
UN demands urgent humanitarian access into LNA-besieged Derna The Libyan National Army (LNA), led by General Haftar, received demands from the United Nations (UN) to allow humanitarian access, such as medical assistance and food, to the city of Derna, currently besieged by the LNA purportedly due to the terrorism threat from the city.
Emmanuel Macron plans crunch summit to push for Libyan elections French President Emmanuel Macron initiated planning on an international summit in Libya at the end of May to push for Libyan presidential elections within the next year,.
معركة درنة.. اختبار إضافي لقوة الجيش الليبي Despite earlier gains in fighting terrorists and recapturing cities in Libya, the Libyan National Army, under General Haftar, faces continued challenges in maintaining these gains, particularly in control over the town of Derna, one of the original Libyan strongholds of the Islamic State.
بريطانيا تصل لتسوية مع قائد فصيل ليبي اختطفه جواسيس بريطانيون وسلموه إلى طرابلس Britain apologized for its role in transferring former Libyan leader Abdelhakim Belhadj and his wife from Thailand to Libya for imprisonment and torture by members of the Gaddafi regime.
Mauritania
Mauritania defense minister calls not to involve military in politics Jallow Mamadou Bhatia, defence minister of Mauritania, made remarks at a press conference calling for keeping armed and security forces out of political debate, in preparation for the upcoming elections.
Vers l'unité dans les rangs des journalistes mauritaniens Mauritanian journalists organize a meeting to discuss ways to overcome the difficulties they face.
تفعيل اتفاقية زراعية بين موريتانيا والسودان Mauritania and Sudan implement an agricultural agreement, where the countries will engage in various initiatives intended to boost their respective agricultural sectors.
Mauritania: Mandatory Death Penalty for Blasphemy Twenty-one national and international nongovernmental organizations (NGO) condemned a recent Mauritanian law on crimes related to apostasy that makes the death penalty mandatory for “blasphemous speech,” particularly with concern over the imprisonment of blogger Mohamed Cheikh Ould Mkhaitir.
تظاهرة أمام السفارة الأمريكية بنواكشوط رفضا لقرار اترامب Mauritanians stage a protest in front of the US embassy in opposition to the decision to move the US embassy to Jerusalem.
Le Conseil des ministres adopte de nouvelles dispositions relatives aux partis politiques Mauritanian president, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, presides over a cabinet council meeting to implement new laws regarding political parties ahead of the country’s elections.
UN Reports on Slavery and Human Rights Violations in Mauritania The United Nations (UN) Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) expressed concerns over Mauritania’s treatment of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the persistence of slavery, and discrimination against the Haratin people.
Mauritania: UNHCR Operational Update as of 14 May 2018 Mauritania’s Mbera camp hosts over two thousand urban refugees and asylum-seekers as well as 56,000 refugees from Mali, with limited prospects of return to their home country due to ongoing conflict in northern Mali.
ولد عبد العزيز يشارك في القمة الإسلامية بتركيا Mauritanian president, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, left Nouakchott to participate in an Islamic Summit in Istanbul to discuss the conflict in Gaza and the moving of the US embassy to Jerusalem.
الحكومة تهدد بقطع رواتب الأطباء المضربين The Mauritanian government threatened to punish striking doctors by suspending salaries and closing private clinics, reportedly in a meeting between the minister of public service, labor, and modern management, and trade union representatives.
Morocco
Morocco severs ties with Iran over supporting Western Sahara independence movement After accusing Tehran and Hezbollah of training and arming members of the Polisario Front through the Iranian embassy in Algiers, Morocco’s foreign ministry announced it will cut diplomatic ties with Iran.
Nasser Zafzafi accuse un témoin de trafic de drogues et annonce une grève de la faim Leader of Morocco’s Hirak protest movement announces an open-ended hunger strike.
After months of mystery, Morocco finally unveils bid for 2026 World Cup After an extensive public information blackout, Morocco 2026 FIFA World Cup bid, chief executive Hicham al Amrani began revealing details of the bid, which proposes a theme of Africa meets Europe, twelve host cities, and a three billion dollar construction budget.
Morocco: Candlelight protest against government Left-wing parties plan to hold candlelight protest marches on the evening of 26 May in response to a combination of declining economic conditions and lack of freedoms in the media, trade unionism, and politics.
Mohammed VI annoncé à Khartoum en octobre According to reports circulating in Sudanese media, Morocco’s king, Mohammed VI, is planning to pay an official visit to Sudan in October.
جامعة الكرة تعاقب فرق الوداد والجيش واتحاد طنجة بسبب الجماهير The Central Disciplinary Committee of the Royal Moroccan Football Federation announced sanctions and fines on a number of soccer teams such as the Tangier Union, Wydad Sports, and Hassania Agadir teams for damage to stadiums caused by fans and bad behavior during matches.
العثماني: الحكومة ستتخذ الإجراءات اللازمة بمجرد التوصل بالتقرير النهائي للجنة المحروقات Morocco’s prime minister Saadeddine Othmani announces his support for the continued work and anticipation of the final report of the exploratory committee on fuel prices in order to find solutions to some of the negative side effects of liberalization of the sector.
Tunisia
Return to Tunis: why now is the time to visit this historic city Since the 2015 terror attacks, tourism in Tunis has been slow to recover compared to European travel to Tunisian beach resorts, despite a range of historic, artistic, and cultural attractions.
Independent candidates get most votes in Tunisia's municipal elections Officials report that, based on preliminary results, independent candidates received more votes than candidates from the two major parties, Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes.
Ghannouchi: Ennahdha est contre le départ de Youssef Chahed Ennahda leader, Rachid Ghannouchi, announces his party is against the departure of Youssef Chahed from the office of prime minister.
Abstention Party, big winner of the municipal elections The practice of abstention dominated in the 6 May municipal elections, amid disenchantment and mistrust of the government, with only thirty-five percent of registered voters going to the polls.
Is Tunisia's Glass Half Empty or Half Full? Following a low turnout in the municipal elections, scholars debate the role of apathy, election delays, and mistrust of political parties in the rising trope of analysis on whether the glass is “half-full” or “half-empty” in Tunisia.
Violences policières à Radès: Mobilisations citoyennes contre l’impunité After the death of Omar Laabidi, seventeen police officers were charged with involuntary manslaughter and failure to assist a person in danger.
التحالفات في المجالس البلدية: نحو جبهة معارضة جديدة ضد النهضة والنداء Alliances in municipal councils, comprising mainly the Democratic Movement, the People’s Movement, and the Popular Front, formed new opposition to the leading government parties of Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes on both the local and federal levels.
عادات تركية في رمضان تونس Tunisians retain a number of Turkish-based customs and traditions during Ramadan, tracing back to the reign of the Husseini family, despite some deterioration of these customs due to urbanization.
Western Sahara
Statement of Sahrawi government following successful recovery and sale of phosphate rock illegally exported from occupied Western Sahara The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) government announced the recovery of cargo ship illegally exporting phosphate which had been detained on 1 May after the South Africa High Court ruled in favor of SADR in February.
Sahrawi Delegation Takes Part in International Solidarity Forum With Cuba on the Occasion of Workers International Day A Sahrawi delegation joined over a thousand delegates from around the world to represent trade union movements at the International Solidarity Meeting in Cuba.
Sahara occidental: Paris se mobilise pour une Française interdite d’entrée au Maroc France officially requests that Morocco allow the wife of imprisoned Sahrawi activist, Naâma Asfari, to visit him in prison, after she went on a hunger strike demanding she see him.
Morocco accuses Algeria of Iran in supporting Iran in Western Sahara feud Morocco’s foreign minister claims that Algeria directly participated in Iran’s training and support of Polisario Front fighters, instead of simply providing a meeting place as previously claimed.
وزير الخارجية يقوم بزيارة عمل يلى جمهورية انغولا Foreign minister, Mohamed Salem Ould Salik, visited the Republic of Angola to meet with his Angolan counterpart and other Angolan diplomatic officials, hoping to gain support for the Sahrawi Republic against Morocco.
الجمهورية الصحراوية تحتفل بيوم إفريقيا The Ministry of Foreign Affairs oversaw the Polisario Front’s commemoration of Africa Day on 25 May, the fifty-fifth anniversary of the founding of the Organization of African Unity (now the African Union).
Latest on Jadaliyya
Muriam Haleh Davis and Thomas Serres, eds. North Africa and the Making of Europe: Governance, Institutions, and Culture (New Texts Out Now) An interview with editors of North Africa and the Making of Europe elaborates on how ‘marginal’ areas such as North Africa had a significant impact on the development of Europe.
No Love Lost and Love Gained: On the Morocco-Iran Rift Morocco’s decision to sever ties with Iran, and accusations of Iranian support for the Polisario Front, comes after decades of tensions with Iran since its 1979 Revolution, but the recent changes stem more from an attempt to solidify the relationship with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the United States than it does spite for Iran.
Samia Henni, Architecture of Counterrevolution: The French Army in Northern Algeria (New Texts Out Now) An interview with Samia Henni on her latest book that examines the often neglected aspects of France’s efforts to maintain Algeria under French rule during the Algerian War of Independence.
The Life Span of Alternative Media: Cases of Lake and Mamfakinch in Morocco Journalists and activists in Morocco helped to launch a new wave of alternative online media before, during, and after the 2011 Arab Spring; two alternative media in particular, Lakome and Mamfakinch demonstrate in their life cycles trends of interaction between alternative media, politics, and economic powers.
Jeffrey R. Halverson and Nathaniel Greenberg, Islamists of the Maghreb (New Texts Out Now) Jeffry Halverson and Nathaniel Greenberg discuss their book, Islamists of the Maghreb, in light of the central role that Maghreb countries played in the Arab Spring.
زحف الثورة المضادة Seven years after the Arab Spring began in Tunisia, issues of revolution and counterrevolution persist, as does the urban-rural divide.