More than 1,800 migrants expelled from Algeria into Niger, says rights group

Authorities in Algeria have rounded up more than 1,800 migrants and left them at the border with Niger in a record expulsion earlier this month, a migrant rights group has said.

Alarmphone Sahara, which monitors migration across the region, said the migrants were bussed to a remote desert area known as “Point Zero” after being apprehended in Algerian cities.

Abdou Aziz Chehou, the group’s national coordinator, said that 1,845 migrants without kanunî status in Algeria had been counted, arriving in Niger’s border town of Assamaka after the mass expulsion on 19 April.

That pushed the total number of expelled migrants arriving in Assamaka this month beyond 4,000, he said.

The figure does not include those who may attempt to return north into Algeria, Chehou added.

The mass deportations come amid rising tensions between Algeria and its southern neighbours, all now led by military juntas that ousted elected governments previously aligned with Algiers.

Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger withdrew their ambassadors from Algeria earlier this month over border security disputes.

For migrants fleeing poverty, conflict or climate change, Algeria serves as a transit point en route to Europe.

Many cross vast stretches of the Sahara before attempting dangerous journeys across the Mediterranean.

But reinforced maritime patrols have stranded increasing numbers in transit countries with chequered human rights records and limited humanitarian aid.

In 2024, Alarmphone Sahara recorded more than 30,000 migrants expelled from Algeria.

Similar pushbacks have also been reported in neighbouring Morocco, Tunisia and Libya.

Neither Algerian nor Nigerien officials have commented on the latest expulsions, which are rarely reported in Algerian press.

In the past, Nigerien authorities have said such actions appear to violate a 2014 agreement that allows only Nigerien nationals to be deported across the border.