Moroccan premier renews denial that Morocco serves as rear-base for Algerian Islamic extremists

Moroccan Premier Abderrahmane Youssoufi renewed Morocco's denial that the country serves as a rear-base for Algerian Islamic extremists perpetrating violence operations in Algeria and insisted that Morocco adheres to the principle of non-interference in Algeria's internal affairs.

Speaking to the Algerian paper "Le Matin," Youssoufi rejected the Algerian president's allegations that Morocco is sending drugs to Algeria. He said it is not nice on the part of Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to make such accusations against a state. Morocco knows there are drug traffickers in the countries of region, but accusing a neighboring and friendly state of Mafia behavior is a provocation, he went on.

Regarding the specific case of the massacre last summer of 28 persons in Algeria, the head of the Moroccan government recalled that the Moroccan government had flatly denied that authors of the terrorist act had taken refuge in Morocco and that they were arrested by Moroccan authorities.

A news agency published the allegation and the Moroccan government denied it. We consider that it is the end of the story and that the information was harmful to Algerian-Moroccan relations and we regret that it was taken seriously by Algerians, he added.