Algeria president dismisses minister of information after false news about Emirati envoy’s deportation

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune dismissed the Minister of Communication Mohamed Bouslimani last night following the publication of false news by a private Algerian channel claiming the Emirati ambassador had been deported.

The Presidency issued a brief statement mentioning the dismissal decision “after consulting with the Prime Minister, the President of the Republic Abdelmadjid Tebboune dismissed the Information Minister Mohamed Bouslimani, and tasked the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Communication with handling the Ministry’s affairs on his behalf.”

The decision was issued only hours after the private Annahar channel published news stating that “Algeria ordered the Emirati ambassador to leave national soil and gave him 48 hours to do so.” The channel stated that the decision to expel the Emirati ambassador came after the arrest of four Emirati spies who were working for the Israeli intelligence service, the Mossad. The arrested spies tried to pass on secrets and information about Algeria, according to the news channel.

It was later revealed that the news was false and unfounded, and the channel removed it from its site.

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The official spokesman for the Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs “categorically denied fake and baseless news that has been published and circulated on social media and some media outlets about ordering the Emirati Ambassador to leave Algeria soil,” stressing that this news is untrue and unfounded, and that the ministry statements are the only source of information.

The official spokesman for the Foreign Ministry expressed “the strength and solidity of the distinguished Algerian-Emirati bilateral relations that exist between the two countries and the two brotherly peoples, with a joint keenness to elevate them to the highest levels, in implementation of the common will of the leaders of the two countries.”