25000 African refugees live in Algerian territory

Nearly 25000 refugees from several African countries fled to the Algerian territory because of the instability in their homelands, Interior Minister Dahou Ould Kablia said Thursday in Algiers. While answering a question on the authorities’ measures to face clandestine immigration of Africans to Algeria, the minister said "we cannot expel these refugees currently, for humanitarian reasons caused by the conflicts and wars occuring in their countries." He stressed that the State took "practical" measures to gather all these refugees, through placing several tents in border regions and providing conditions for decent living for them. A meeting between Interior and Defence ministries was held to ensure security in these regions, as part of measures to take care of the refugees until the recovery of stability and security in their countries and in application of Algeria international obligations in terms of human rights respect. The minister justified the "significant increase" in the number of Africans living illegally in Algeria by the situation prevailing in their countries, notably the region of Sahel like Mali and Niger.