Abdennour Toumi

Opinion Contributor at Daily Sabah

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Articles

France on fire: Generational revolts of the banlieues

2 weeks ago | themuslimtimes.info | Rafiq A. Tschannen |Abdennour Toumi

Jul 14, 2023 – An attendee waves a light flare as he stands atop a street sign during a commemoration march for Nahel, a teenage driver shot dead by police, in the Parisian suburb of Nanterre, France, June 29, 2023. (AFP Photo)The question of the youth with Maghreb and African Sahel origins largely residing in the peri-suburbs of France, commonly known as “la banlieue,” has emerged as an ongoing social challenge. The thorny issue of the youth in the banlieues has become a social chronic disease.
France and Algeria: A fragile reset

1 month ago | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

The current phase of French-Algerian relations is far from making tangible progress. While French President Emmanuel Macron has previously shown a political willingness to improve ties between the two nations, historical, geographical, cultural and demographic affinities alone are insufficient to overcome the challenges at hand. On one side, there is a persistent discourse rooted in a nostalgic denial of the past, with certain factions in France clinging to colonial-era narratives.
French ambitions: Leading Europe while struggling at home

2 months ago | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

In this post-World War II world order, economics and geopolitics have drastically shifted due to COVID-19, Russia's special operation in Ukraine in 2022, and more recently, U.S. President Donald Trump’s strategies of shock since his inauguration. This has been followed by consecutive summits in Riyadh and Istanbul aimed at resolving the Ukraine crisis, as well as Trump's declaration of a global trade war last week.
France: The paradox of 'irrealpolitik' in Syria

Mar 3, 2025 | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

While French President Emmanuel Macron is haunted by the political tremors started by U.S. President Donald Trump, the ghost of the disunion of Europe, and the diplomatic showdown with Algeria, a new agenda has been taking place in French politics. Last month’s Paris summit to discuss the political transition in Syria was joined by Arab and Western powers after Macron spoke to Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and invited him for a state visit to France, promising reconstruction of Syria.
Tarnished diplomacy: Declining France-Algeria relations

Jan 30, 2025 | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

Diplomacy operates under the constant pressures and challenges of ongoing crises between states. Yet, diplomatic actions and interactions are meant to be conducted with art and manners to seize opportunities and let realism dominate over idealism. The diplomatic tension between Paris and Algiers, fed by the far-right corporatist media, elites, political pundits and leaders, has taken a different turn.
France: A Christian Democrat to save Macron's presidency

Jan 9, 2025 | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

Political drama in France continues, offering ample material for analysts and political drama writers. The year 2024 was one that the French people desperately wanted to end, as it was a turbulent time for President Emmanuel Macron. During the year, Macron appointed four prime ministers, while France faced multiple social and political protests, from Calais on the French Channel to New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean.
Migration crisis as human issue, not political game

Nov 27, 2024 | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

The reality behind the complex issue of sub-Saharan migrants’ despair shows how this human tragedy has become a serious national security concern for both North African and Southern European countries. In fact, this issue needs to be tackled with wise and genuine long-term public policies, as it is a humanitarian matter.
Return of authoritarianism in Tunisia: Implications of Saied's reelection

Oct 17, 2024 | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

On Oct. 6, 2024, Tunisian President Kais Saied was reelected in a landslide victory that sent Tunisians back to the days of Arab tyrant regimes in the 1980s and 1990s. So far, no Western leader has officially congratulated him for his reelection, neither U.S. President Joe Biden nor French President Emmanuel Macron, his friend Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni or Joseph Borrell, the high representative of the EU Foreign Affairs Council.
Algeria’s youth push for quiet change

Sep 24, 2024 | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

On Sept. 7, Algerians went to the polls to vote in the second presidential election since the 2019 protest movement (Hirak). Despite high unemployment rates and the rising cost of living, Algerians remain hopeful. It could be said that this marks a new dynamic of political, economic and social change toward stability, a dynamic set in motion by the reelected President Abdelmadjid Tebboune's administration, which has encouraged the Algerian public to vote.
Macron’s France is nation teetering on brink

Sep 2, 2024 | dailysabah.com | Abdennour Toumi

In the wake of the recent French elections, the anticipated reshaping of the political landscape has failed to materialize, leaving France at a crossroads that is as culturally fragmented as it is politically tumultuous. The current state of French politics extends beyond mere partisan maneuvering; it reflects deeper, unresolved questions about national identity, social cohesion and the role of immigration in shaping the nation’s future.