Dakar: The members of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) - Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso - on Sunday said that they were recalling their ambassadors to Algeria following the country’s downing of a Malian armed drone earlier in the week.
The AES said in a joint statement that it “vigorously condemned” the downing of the drone which was flying near the Algerian border town of Tin Zaouatine on the night of March 31-April 1, stating that the destruction of the aircraft “prevented the neutralization of a terrorist group that was planning terrorist acts against the AES.” Mali said in a separate statement that a preliminary investigation into the events revealed that the drone was flying over Malian territory and was about 10 kilometres from the Algerian border when it was downed.
Algeria’s Ministry of Defence had said earlier in the week that the armed reconnaissance drone had crossed the border and travelled over Algerian airspace for more than 2 kilometres before being hit. (DPA)
