Madar (Algiers) - Algeria's Council of the Nation, the upper house of parliament, has unanimously approved a decision allowing army units to be sent to Niger, the first such parliamentary approval since October 1973.
According to estimates, the expected forces could be tasked with protecting oil facilities in Niger, amid stronger military cooperation between the two countries.
The approval followed a visit to Algiers by Niger's defence minister, General Salifou Mody, who signed a military cooperation protocol with the Algerian army chief of staff, General Said Chanegriha, and met President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.
