Explained: Why France Expelled 12 Algerian Officials As Tensions Escalate

While the arrest served as the immediate flashpoint, diplomatic tensions between the two countries have been simmering for months.

What is the kidnapping case at the centre of the dispute?

Three Algerian nationals were recently arrested by French authorities and charged with “kidnapping or arbitrary detention… in connection with a terrorist undertaking,” CNN reported. The case involves Amir Boukhors, a political influencer and critic of Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. Mr Boukhors, who posts on TikTok as Amir DZ and has lived in France since 2016, was abducted outside his home near Paris in April.

Mr Boukhors was handcuffed and abducted by four men outside his home in Val-de-Marne, south of Paris, according to The Guardian. The men with police armbands drugged and held him to a “container” before being released over 24 hours later, Mr Boukhors said. “I fell into a trap,” The Guardian quoted him as saying. Among the arrested suspects was a man employed at the Algerian consulate in Creteil, a suburb of Paris — a detail that has further inflamed bilateral tensions.

Why did Algeria object so strongly to the arrest?

Algeria has denied any involvement in the kidnapping and condemned the arrest of its consular employee. In a statement, the Algerian foreign ministry accused France of attempting to “humiliate Algeria, with no consideration for the consular status of this agent, disregarding all diplomatic customs and practices, and in flagrant violation of the relevant conventions and treaties.”

While ties between France and Algeria have long been delicate, they took a turn for the worse in 2024 when French President Emmanuel Macron backed Morocco's stance over Algeria's in the disputed Western Sahara region, reported The Guardian. Further strains emerged after Algeria imprisoned Boualem Sansal, a French-Algerian author critical of Islamism and Algeria's leadership. Mr Sansal, now 75, was sentenced to five years, a move Macron has publicly criticised, urging his release.

Was there any attempt at reconciliation?

There were signs of reconciliation in late March 2025 when Macron spoke with President Tebboune over a phone call. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot also visited Algiers earlier in April, suggesting a thaw was underway. But the mass expulsion of diplomats — the largest since Algeria's independence from France in 1962 — marks a dramatic reversal. It highlights the continued strength of anti-French sentiment within parts of the Algerian leadership, BBC reported.

What is France's official position on the expulsions?

France rejected Algeria's justification for the diplomatic expulsions. “Dialogue, always, but not one-way,” Mr Barrot posted on X (formerly Twitter), calling Algeria's move “unjustified and incomprehensible.”