Abdelhamid Abdaoui is replacing Ahmed Benyamina, who was the Algerian ambassador to Morocco for nine years.
Rabat – Abdelhamid Abdaoui, the new Algerian ambassador to Morocco, has presented his credentials to Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita. Abdaoui met Bourita in Rabat on Wednesday, November 13, according to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Algeria announced Abdaoui’s appointment on September 26. Previously, Algeria’s interim president, Abdelkader Bensalah, had appointed Abdelaziz Benali Cherif. Morocco allegedly rejected Cherif as ambassador.
Before Abdaoui, Ahmed Benyamina served as the Algerian ambassador to Morocco. Benyamina arrived in Rabat in 2010. Interim President Bensalah recalled Benyamina earlier this year in a diplomatic shake-up.
The new ambassador is a career diplomat, having served in the Algerian foreign ministry. Abdaoui represented Algeria as ambassador to Kuwait from September 2016.
The Algerian government has been in turmoil since the protests of hundreds of thousands of Algerians began in February. President Abdelaziz Bouteflika resigned in April, leaving a gap in the presidency that has yet to be filled. While an interim government has called for elections in December, the polls have seen consistent delays since July.
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Protesters in Algeria argue that any election would be illegitimate until all political leaders who were part of Bouteflika’s administration have resigned.
Morocco and Algeria share the world’s longest closed land border. Tensions between the two countries have simmered for decades over Western Sahara and the border demarcation.
