Morocco: Mining tunnels along Algeria border used for irregular migration

A picture taken from the Moroccan region of Oujda shows Algerians taking pictures along the border with Morocco on November 4, 2021. [FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images]

Mining tunnels in Morocco’s Jerada province along the border with Algeria are being used for irregular migration, the Moroccan Minister of Energy Transition, Leila Benali, said yesterday.

“The Sidi Boubacar site in Jerada has become a conducive corridor for illegal migration, to and from Algeria through mining tunnels, which has become a threat to our public security,” Benali told the Moroccan parliament.

She added that the mining site license was suspended in the 70s “as a result of the depletion of the underground reserves of mineral materials.” Mining in that region is “illegal, and what is being carried out is fraught with dangers,” she warned.

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