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Fez – After threatening to boycott the competition, Algeria’s handball team has officially withdrawn from the 2022 African Men’s Handball Championship expected to be held in Morocco.
The African Handball Confederation (CAHB) revealed on December 7 the list of teams participating in the 2022 African Men’s Handball Championship that Morocco will host in Guelmim and Laayoune early next year.
The list of the participating teams did not include the Algerian handball team, confirming the country’s officials’ earlier threats to boycott the tournament in case it would be held in one of Morocco’s southern provinces.
Eleven teams are set to participate in the continental tournament, alongside host country Morocco.
The participating teams include Egypt, Tunisia, Angola, Cape Verde, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Guinea, Nigeria, Cameroon, Senegal, Kenya.
The draw for the 2022 African Men’s Handball Championship took place yesterday at CAHB’s headquarters in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
The draw brought host country Morocco in Group B alongside Angola, Nigeria, and Kenya. Group A includes Egypt, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, and Cameroon. Meanwhile, Group C consists of Tunisia, Cape Verde, Guinea, and Senegal.
Read also: Western Sahara: Why Algeria is Furious at the Latest UN Resolution
Prior to officially withdrawing from the event, the president of Algeria’s handball federation, Habib Laban, had threatened to boycott the competition if one of Algeria’s games was to be played in one of the Moroccan cities of Laayoune or Guelmim.
“Algeria’s participation would depend on the site of its games,” Laban announced in a statement to the local media La Gazette du Fennec earlier this year. “Algeria could withdraw from the competition if one of our games should be played in one of these cities [Laayoune and Guelmim].”
Algeria’s decision to withdraw from the competition could be subjected to heavy sanctions by the African body, including the team’s participation in the 2023 World Men’s Handball Championship.
The country’s withdrawal comes on the heels of mounting political tensions between Algeria and Morocco.
But Algeria’s stance on the Western Sahara conflict is the main reason for its decision to boycott the 2022 2022 African Men’s Handball Championship.
The Algerian government is the main backer of the separatist Polisario Front, which it finances, arms, and shelters in support of its independence claims over Morocco’s southern provinces.
