Algeria has just deployed four Su-30 fighter jets to Niger, breaking with its traditional military restraint outside its borders. This new posture comes as Algiers seeks to regain influence lost in the Sahel, particularly in the face of Morocco’s advance.
Mohamed Ouahbi approaches the upcoming continental challenges with determination. He aims for the final prize at the Africa Cup, while calling for the utmost caution against already well-known group opponents.
Due to tensions with Morocco and Sahel countries like Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, Algeria is maintaining a high budget for defense in the 2026 finance law, close to 20%, around $25 billion, out of an estimated general national budget of around $135 billion.
While some Atlas Lions, especially the newcomers like Hamza Igamane and Neil El Aynaoui, shone in Morocco’s two matches against Niger (5-0) and Zambia (2-0) for the 2026 World Cup African qualifiers, others - among the veterans - like Eliesse Ben Seghir were unable to make an impact.
After Morocco’s convincing 5-0 victory over Niger, which secured their qualification for the 2026 World Cup, national team coach Walid Regragui expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance. He highlighted that he had corrected the mistakes from the previous international break and praised the control exercised by his players.
The Moroccan national football team has officially validated its qualification for the 2026 World Cup by largely defeating Niger (5-0), this Friday, September 5th. The match, played at the newly inaugurated Moulay Abdellah Complex in Rabat, allowed the Atlas Lions to secure their ticket for the competition even before the end of the qualifiers.
It is a match with high symbolic significance that awaits the Atlas Lions this Friday, September 5th. On the pitch of the freshly renovated Moulay Abdellah Complex in Rabat, the Moroccan national team only needs a point against Niger to validate what would be its third consecutive qualification for a World Cup. What time and on which channels can you watch this match live?
Ranked in Group E, Morocco will face Niger on Friday, September 5th as part of the 7th round of the 2026 World Cup African qualifiers scheduled from June 11 to July 19, 2026 in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Meanwhile, training sessions are ongoing.
The Moroccan DGED (external intelligence) led by Mohammed Yassine Mansouri, and the DGST (internal intelligence) led by Abdellatif Hammouchi have achieved feats, providing crucial assistance to the Nigerian armed forces, France and many other countries. But these achievements would be viewed in a bad light by external services - possibly Algerian - who invent a war between them.
Dozens of workers have been diverted from the construction site of the Ibn Sina University Hospital to complete the Prince Moulay Abdellah stadium in Rabat, which is scheduled to host a 2026 World Cup qualifying match between Morocco and Niger in September and other football competitions later.
The four Moroccan truck drivers, kidnapped in January 2025 in northeastern Burkina Faso near the border with Niger, have been released. This is the result of a joint operation between the National Security Agency (ANSE) of Mali and the Directorate General of Studies and Documentation (DGED) of Morocco.
Announced in November 2023 by King Mohammed VI, the "Atlantic Initiative" aims to facilitate access to the ocean for the landlocked countries of the Sahel (Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad) through the port of Dakhla, under construction in the north of the city.