Algeria arrests 4 Moroccans in 'spy network' bust ahead of presidential election

Just a week before the presidential election, Algeria announced that it has arrested four Moroccans as part of a recent spy network bust, as presidential candidates have claim that the state faces unprecedented "foreign threats".

On Sunday, 1 September, the public prosecutor in the city of Tlemcen, northwestern Algeria and near the Moroccan borders, announced the arrest of seven suspects, including four Moroccans and three Algerians, following the dismantling of a network allegedly "involved in espionage and intelligence activities threatening state security."

The Moroccan detainees face charges of "spying for a foreign country or its agents" and "illegally entering Algerian territory." The prosecutor's office stated that the network had recruited both Moroccan and Algerian nationals to target Algerian security and administrative institutions.

Last month, Algeria's military say they had "thwarted a terrorist plot" involving twenty-one people allegedly linked to a network based in France. The ministry's statement accused "hostile foreign intelligence services" and the Movement for the Autonomy of Kabylie (MAK) — a group advocating for self-determination for the Amazigh Kabylia region—of orchestrating the attack.

The MAK, classified as a terrorist organisation in Algeria since 2021, has denied these allegations, which include claims of involvement in car bombings and collaboration with Morocco and Israel.

Since the suppression of the Hirak movement—a series of peaceful protests that led to the ousting of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika in 2019—warnings of foreign threats have become a recurring theme in Algeria. During the ongoing presidential campaign, candidates have leveraged this narrative to garner voter support.

Presidential candidate Abdelaali Hassani of the moderate Islamist party, the Movement of Society for Peace (MSP), argued last week that Algeria's primary issue is "with the Moroccan regime, which he has historically conspired against Algeria."

"Foreign forces are plotting against the country. The Algerian people are aware of this", Hassani added, hinting at other unnamed foreign entities. Rabat has yet to address the recent allegations.

Algeria severed diplomatic ties with Morocco in 2021 following Rabat's decision to normalise relations with Israel. Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra said at the time that Rabat's normalisation is "a hostile act" that adds to the list of "unfriendly actions" from Morocco towards Algeria.  

For decades, the two North African neighbours have maintained strained ties, with brief moments of friendship, primarily due to their disagreement over the disputed territory of Western Sahara, which both Rabat and the Algeria-backed Polisario Front claim sovereignty over.