Diplomacy & Geopolitics
Algeria closes airspace to most UAE aircraft
Algeria said Thursday it would close its airspace to most UAE-registered civilian and military aircraft from Friday after severing diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates.
The Algerian defence ministry said the ban would apply to Emirati-registered civil and military aircraft. Commercial flights to and from Algiers airport are exempt until the end of 2026.
In announcing the diplomatic break, Algeria's foreign ministry accused the UAE of “provocative and hostile acts” and said it had exhausted efforts to preserve bilateral relations. It gave the UAE ambassador 48 hours “to comply with the decision.” The ministry did not say what immediately triggered the rupture.
The Emirati foreign ministry said it hoped Algeria's decision would be temporary so the two countries could maintain “fraternal ties.”
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has repeatedly accused the UAE of seeking to destabilise countries in the region, including Libya, Mali and Sudan. In July, he said a diplomatic break “would have happened long ago” had Algeria not sought to avoid “deepening divisions” in the Arab world.
Geoff Porter, an analyst with North Africa Risk Consulting, said Algeria saw UAE activity in North Africa and the Sahel as contrary to its foreign policy principles and an indirect security threat. Porter cited Abu Dhabi's support for eastern Libyan military leader Khalifa Haftar, backing for the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan and a drone base in Mauritania as points of contention.
Other tensions have included Algerian objections to UAE-based Sky News Arabia's interview with historian Mohamed Amine Belghit, who questioned the existence of Algeria's indigenous Amazigh culture, and the UAE's 2020 normalisation of ties with Israel.
Update
Algiers said it was giving the UAE ambassador 48 hours to comply with the decision to sever relations.
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune had said in July that a diplomatic break would have happened earlier had Algeria not sought to avoid deepening Arab divisions.
Analyst Geoff Porter linked the tensions to UAE activity in North Africa and the Sahel, citing Libya, Sudan and Mauritania.
The story adds further context on disputes over media coverage, Amazigh culture remarks and the UAE's 2020 normalisation of ties with Israel.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 September 2026 at 19:21:51 UTC.
Update
Algeria said the airspace closure would take effect at midnight on September 11, 2026.
Algeria said Emirati civil commercial flights to or from Algiers Houari Boumediene International Airport would continue until the end of 2026, when the contract expires.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 September 2026 at 19:04:16 UTC.
Update
Algeria said it would close its airspace to UAE civilian and military aircraft.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 September 2026 at 18:47:50 UTC.
Update
Geoff Porter of North Africa Risk Consulting said Algeria viewed UAE activity in North African and Sahelian affairs as an indirect threat to Algerian security.
Porter cited Abu Dhabi's support for Khalifa Haftar in eastern Libya, backing of the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan and a drone base in Mauritania as points of contention.
The item adds detail on a dispute after Sky News Arabia aired an interview with historian Mohamed Amine Belghit, who was jailed in Algeria and later pardoned.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 September 2026 at 18:39:39 UTC.
Update
The UAE said it hoped Algeria's decision to cut diplomatic ties would be temporary.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 September 2026 at 17:47:52 UTC.
Update
Algeria's foreign ministry accused the UAE of “provocative and hostile acts” without giving details.
Algiers said the UAE ambassador had 48 hours to comply with the decision.
There was no immediate reaction from UAE authorities.
The foreign ministry said Algeria had warned Abu Dhabi several times and said the UAE had persisted in actions Algeria considered unacceptable.
The item adds background on Algerian criticism of Sky News Arabia coverage, the jailing and later pardon of historian Mohamed Amine Belghit, and tensions over the UAE's 2020 normalisation of ties with Israel.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 September 2026 at 12:35:09 UTC.
Update
Algiers said it was giving the UAE ambassador to Algeria 48 hours to comply with the decision.
President Abdelmajid Tebboune had previously accused the UAE of having a negative impact in the region and said Algeria wanted it to stay away.
Source note: AFP news report published on 10 September 2026 at 11:31:46 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The immediate trigger for the rupture was not made clear.
Algeria's accusations against the UAE are allegations and were not independently established in the supplied material.
Source
AFP news report published on .