Mali and Niger have renewed accusations that Algeria is contributing to instability in the Sahel by allegedly sheltering or enabling armed groups operating across the region, deepening a long-running diplomatic rift in West Africa’s security landscape.
Although officials stopped short of explicitly naming Algeria in recent remarks at a regional security forum in Senegal, their statements echoed earlier claims by Bamako that Algiers has become a rear base for militant and separatist groups active in northern Mali.
“There are neighboring countries that are currently harboring terrorist groups, supporting terrorist groups, or frequently receiving hostile forces that carry out operations against us,” Malian Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop said, according to Reuters.
The comments reflect escalating tensions between Mali’s military-led government and Algeria, amid growing friction over border security, armed insurgencies and regional counterterrorism strategies.
Mali and Niger argue that militant groups operating in the Sahel benefit from cross-border mobility and weak coordination among neighbouring states, which they say undermines regional security efforts.
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Security analysts note that some of the armed groups active in the Sahel have historical links to militant movements that emerged from Algeria’s internal conflict in the 1990s, including factions that later evolved into al-Qaeda-affiliated networks operating across the Sahara.
Groups such as Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) are widely seen as having origins in earlier Algerian insurgent formations, though their current operations span multiple countries in the region.
Tensions between Bamako and Algiers intensified last year following a deterioration in diplomatic relations. Mali has repeatedly accused Algeria of interference in its internal security affairs and of failing to sufficiently control militant activity near its southern border.
The dispute escalated further after Mali reported that Algerian forces shot down a Malian military drone near the border in March, an incident Bamako described as deliberate and linked to the protection of militant leaders targeted by Malian operations.
In response, Mali, alongside Niger and Burkina Faso, recalled their ambassadors from Algiers and issued a joint statement accusing Algeria of destabilising behaviour in the region.
Niger has consistently aligned itself with Mali in the dispute, with military authorities in Niamey expressing solidarity over what they describe as shared security threats and external interference.
Niger’s military leadership has previously accused foreign actors of backing armed groups operating in the Sahel, reinforcing a broader narrative among regional juntas that instability is fuelled by cross-border and external influences.
Algeria has previously rejected such accusations, maintaining that it plays a stabilising role in regional security and supports counterterrorism efforts in the Sahel through diplomacy and border cooperation.
However, the latest exchange highlights deepening mistrust between North African and Sahelian governments at a time when insurgent violence continues across Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, despite ongoing military operations.
The dispute also underscores a widening geopolitical divide in West Africa, where military-led governments in the Sahel are increasingly asserting sovereignty while accusing neighbouring states and external powers of complicating counterterrorism efforts.
For now, the rift between the two sides shows little sign of easing, raising concerns among analysts about further fragmentation of regional security cooperation at a time when extremist groups remain active across large parts of the Sahel.
The dispute between Mali, Niger and Algeria is rooted in a long and complex history of insecurity across the Sahel, where armed insurgencies, porous borders and shifting regional alliances have repeatedly shaped relations between North and West African states.
Violence in the region escalated significantly after the collapse of Libya in 2011, which flooded the Sahel with weapons and fighters and helped strengthen militant groups already operating in northern Mali. These groups later expanded across borders into Niger and Burkina Faso, contributing to one of the world’s most persistent security crises.
Algeria has historically positioned itself as a key counterterrorism actor in the region, leveraging its experience from its own civil war in the 1990s. During that conflict, militant groups such as the Armed Islamic Group and later splinter factions engaged in a prolonged insurgency against the Algerian state.
Security analysts say some of those networks evolved over time into transnational organisations operating across the Sahara, including Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), which became active in Mali and surrounding countries in the 2000s.
While Algeria has long maintained that it works to contain militant threats and prevent cross-border spillover, relations with Sahelian governments have periodically been strained over differing approaches to security cooperation, border control and political mediation in northern Mali.
The latest tensions intensified after military coups in Mali (2020), Niger (2023) and Burkina Faso, which brought juntas to power that have since adopted a more confrontational stance toward certain foreign partners and regional mediators.
Mali in particular has accused Algeria of undermining its sovereignty and of maintaining contacts with armed groups active in northern regions, allegations Algeria has rejected. These accusations have become more vocal amid ongoing insurgent activity despite years of international counterterrorism operations.
A key flashpoint in the recent escalation was an incident in which Mali said an Algerian military action downed one of its drones near the shared border. Bamako described the move as hostile, while Algiers framed its border security operations as necessary for preventing militant infiltration.
Following that incident, Mali and its allies Niger and Burkina Faso recalled their ambassadors from Algiers and issued coordinated statements accusing Algeria of destabilising behaviour, marking a sharp diplomatic rupture between the Sahel bloc and its northern neighbour.
Niger has consistently aligned itself with Mali in these disputes, reflecting broader political coordination among the three Sahelian military governments, who have increasingly presented a unified position on sovereignty and security policy.
At the same time, insecurity in the Sahel remains driven by a mix of local grievances, weak state presence, illicit trafficking networks and extremist groups affiliated with global jihadist movements. These dynamics have made the region highly volatile and difficult to stabilise, regardless of external involvement.
Regional and international analysts caution that narratives assigning responsibility to neighbouring states often reflect deeper political tensions and competition over security influence, even as insurgent groups continue to exploit governance gaps across borders.
The breakdown in trust between Sahelian governments and Algeria now risks further complicating already fragile regional security cooperation at a time when extremist violence continues across large parts of the central Sahel.
