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Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Asharq Al-Awsat

Algeria to Reopen Land border with Tunisia

A general view of Habib Bourguiba Avenue in downtown Tunis, virtually deserted on the first day of a general lockdown to stop the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) ordered by Tunisia's president last Friday, in Tunis, Tunisia, March 22, 2020. REUTERS / Zoubeir Souissi/File Photo

Algeria said Tuesday it would reopen its land border with Tunisia later this month, more than two years after it was shut at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

"We have taken the joint decision to reopen the land border from July 15," said President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

He was speaking at Algiers airport alongside his Tunisian counterpart President Kais Saied, who was leaving the country after attending a huge parade marking 60 years since Algeria's independence from France.

Passengers had been blocked from crossing the border since March 2020 to stop the Covid-19 illness spreading, although cargo traffic had continued, AFP reported.

Being cut off from a neighbor of some 44 million people has dealt a serious blow to Tunisia's tourism industry.

More than three million Algerians usually visit the country every year, according to local media.

Air and sea links between the two countries were restored in June 2021.

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