Algeria is set to dispatch military units into neighbouring Niger, a historic shift in regional security that marks the country’s first foreign deployment since sending forces to Egypt during the 1973 Arab, Israeli War.
The decision follows a high-level visit to Algiers by Niger’s Defence Minister, General Salifou Modi, as the junta-led nation increasingly looks to regional neighbours for security support against escalating threats from armed groups linked to al-Qaeda and Islamic State.
The Algerian troops will be stationed at a former French military base in Madama, near the Libyan border.
The military pact cements mended relations between the two nations, which have spent months rebuilding ties following a severe diplomatic rift that saw Niger recall its ambassador to Algiers, a year ago.
–ChannelAfrica–
