Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Salah Eddine Mezouar said the Moroccan Government has decided to "respond firmly" to firing by Algerian Army troops toward ten Moroccan civilians on the Morocco-Algerian border.
That incident of this nature "affects the norms of good neighborliness, and are incompatible with the norms of humanitarian and international human rights in dealing with the management of borders between two neighbors that share historical ties," the Moroccan Minister said at a news conference, held late on Saturday.
"This unprecedented attack is an escalation and comes as a culmination of a series of previous incidents by the Algerian authorities at the borders," Mezouar Said.
The Minister said that Morocco's Foreign Ministry summoned the Algerian ambassador to protest this "unacceptable behavior." "Morocco strongly protests this direct and unacceptable attack on the life of Moroccan civilians by the Algerian Army and denounces the irresponsible act that adds to other provocative actions recently recorded at the borders," said a statement released by the Moroccan Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
This is the second time this year that the Algerian Army opens fire at the borders between the two countries. Last February, Algerian soldiers opened fire at a Moroccan checkpoint, in the northeastern province of Figuig. But the shooting did not cause any casualties.
Following the incident, Morocco's ambassador in Algeria contacted the Algerian competent authorities and demanded explanations over the circumstances of the incident.