Once again, an Algerian senior official is accusing Morocco of drug trafficking. Ahmed Ouyahia's recent statement is surely a result of the pressure put by the president's entourage. Details. Ahmed Ouyahia, the Algerian Prime Minister, has attacked once again those outsiders who «shower» his country with «drugs», referring to Morocco. The accusations were made on Thursday by the senior official who is also Secretary General of the National Rally for Democracy at the 4th session of the party's council and were reported by the Algerian daily newspaper, El Khabar. Using the same choice of words as the former Foreign Minister, Morad Medelci, Ouyahia spoke in front of his followers of the real «aggression aimed at poisoning youth and stopping the process of development» in Algeria. Which according to him is «a serious offense against the common future of the Maghreb peoples». And to conclude, the Algerian official showed support for the Polisario front. A very special context The Algerian Prime Minister's accusations come in a special context that goes behind the deterioration of Moroccan Algerian diplomatic relations. In June 2016, and as head of Abdelaziz Bouteflika's cabinet, Ouyahia attacked the kingdom pressured by Chakib Khelil, a politician who was exiled in the United States. From 2016 to 2018, the situation has not really changed. If Ahmed Ouyahia took the lead by taking the place of Abdelmajid Tebboune at the head of the government, his presidential ambitions are still blocked, stated Djamel Ould Abbes. The secretary general of the National Liberation Front (FLN) is determined to stop the Prime Minister's dream of replacing Bouteflika. This is how the leader of the FLN continues to openly demand a 5th mandate for the sick president, in anticipation of the elections of 2019. On the other hand, Ouyahia does not show the same enthusiasm for a 5th presidential term. This is confirmed through his November 2017 interview with Al Bilad TV where he played his cards close to his chest. In Algeria, the war between the two men is no longer a secret. Attacking and accusing Morocco is just a way of sending hidden messages to the people in power in Algeria and to avoid the disgrace of another Prime Minister. The example here is Ahmed Benfliss who urged in 2004 Algeria and the kingdom for the settlement of the Sahara issue.
