Algeria blasts French leader, bans flights, recalls diplomat

ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — Algeria has refused permission for France to fly military planes in its airspace and announced the recall of its ambassador from Paris in the wake of what it said were “inadmissible” comments attributed to French President Emmanuel Macron. The sharp escalation in tensions also follows a French decision to slash the number of visas issued to people in North Africa including Algeria because governments there are refusing to take back migrants expelled from France. The immediate recall of Algeria’s ambassador from France for “consultations” was announced Saturday evening in a statement from the Algerian presidency. The statement said the recall was motivated by recent comments about Algeria that were attributed to Macron.