Algeria has recalled its ambassadors from AES countries; Mali and Niger, and suspended the appointment of a new envoy to Burkina Faso, following a rapid fallout with Mali over the destruction of a drone.
The crisis began when Algerian forces intercepted and destroyed a Malian drone that reportedly entered Algerian airspace near the border on the night of March 31 to April 1, 2025. Mali condemned the action as “flagrant aggression” and threatened to file a formal complaint with international bodies.
In response, Algeria rejected Mali’s accusations and accused the transitional authorities in Bamako of attempting to deflect attention from what it described as the “manifest failure” of the country’s military-led transition.
Algeria claimed that the drone had violated its airspace multiple times—on August 27, December 29, 2024, and again in April 2025, and that its path was “offensive,” justifying the decision to destroy it.
Algiers also took aim at the broader AES bloc, criticizing what it called the “reckless alignment” of Burkina Faso and Niger with Mali’s position. The Algerian government expressed “deep dismay” over the joint statement by the College of Heads of State of the AES, which had described the drone’s destruction as an “aggression against all members” of the alliance.
Meanwhile, Mali insisted that the drone, was shot down 9.5 km inside Malian territory and summoned the Algerian ambassador in protest.
Mali also announced its withdrawal from the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CEMOC), a regional security coordination body, blaming Algeria for allegedly interfering in anti-terror operations in the Kidal region.
© WAVN