The United States has expressed its disagreement with Algeria's decision to label the Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylie (MAK) as a terrorist group, considering that this designation is more about «political considerations than security ones». This position, formulated in the latest report from the State Department, emphasizes that the MAK, like the Islamist movement Rachad, also targeted by Algiers, does not appear to have committed terrorist acts as defined by Washington. This American stance comes in a regional context marked by persistent tensions between Morocco and Algeria. Rabat has publicly displayed its support for the MAK at the United Nations as part of a strategy to respond to Algerian positions in favor of the Polisario Front. For its part, Algiers has hosted an office of the National Party of the Rif, a group of Moroccans from Belgium advocating for the independence of this region in northern Morocco. Algeria also continues to provide military and financial support to the Polisario. The separatist movement has launched attacks against Moroccan positions in the Sahara, but also on civilians in Smara, a site of the UN mission (MINURSO), and even participants in a celebration in Al Mahbes. The Polisario Front has threatened Morocco with terrorist attacks. Relations between Morocco and Algeria have been particularly tense since diplomatic ties were severed by Algiers in 2021.
