Algeria says it downed a drone near its border with Mali as tensions simmer between the 2 countries

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BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Algeria said Tuesday it shot down a military drone near the country’s border with Mali in the first incident of its kind during growing tensions between the two countries governing a vast portion of the Sahara.

The country’s army said in a statement that the armed reconnaissance drone had entered Algerian airspace Monday near Tin Zaouatine, a border town and stronghold for Tuareg separatists opposed to Mali’s government. Mali’s army acknowledged that one of its drones had crashed in the area, but did not confirm whether it was shot down by Algeria.

Rida Lyammouri, a Sahel expert at the Morocco-based Policy Center for the New South, said the shooting down of the drone — rather than issuing a warning — reflected simmering frustrations.

It “confirms the serious tensions between the countries and unwillingness and zero tolerance by Algeria to allow the use of its airspace and territory by Malian forces,” he said.

The incident comes as tensions rise between Algeria and its southern neighbors, including Mali.

Algeria once served as a key mediator during more than a decade of conflict between Mali’s government and Tuareg rebels. But the two countries have grown apart since a military junta staged coups in 2020 and 2021, putting military personnel in charge of the country’s key institutions.

Algeria has denounced the direction that Mali’s new government has taken and its expanded efforts to quash rebellion in historically volatile parts of northern Mali. Afraid of conflict spilling over the border, Algerian officials have denounced Mali’s use of Russian mercenaries and armed drones near Tin Zaouatine, which is divided by the border separating the two countries.

But failures to curb instability in northern Mali have led to the downfall of previous governments and Mali’s Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maiga addressed the issue in a speech at the United Nations General Assembly last year, promising to respond swiftly to violence in the north.

Algeria has one of Africa’s largest militaries and has long considered itself a regional power but military leaders in neighboring Mali and Niger have distanced themselves as they’ve championed autonomy and sought new alliances, including with Russia.

Algeria did not specify who the drone it intercepted belonged to. A spokesperson for Mali’s army declined to comment when asked about Algeria’s alleging that an armed drone had crossed its border, but said the crash didn’t hurt anyone or cause property damage.

Unverified video circulating on social media showed images of an Akinci drone manufactured by Baykar downed in Tin Zaouatine. Mali purchased at least two from the Turkish company last year and has used them against armed separatists as well as fighters linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.

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Associated Press writer Sam Metz in Rabat, Morocco contributed to this report.