Armed gang attacks Chinese railway workers near Tindouf amid rising insecurity, forum warns

The Forum for Supporters of Autonomy in Tindouf Camps (FORSATIN) has sounded the alarm over growing insecurity around the Tindouf refugee camps and neighboring Algerian provinces after an armed gang attacked Chinese workers from a company overseeing a state-backed railway project.

In a statement posted on its official Facebook page, the forum said the incident “reflects the worsening security breakdown in and around the Tindouf camps.”

The gang reportedly assaulted employees of the Chinese company CRCC, which is constructing the new Tindouf–Gara Djebilet railway line, a key project for Algeria.

According to FORSATIN, the attack occurred along the route connecting Tindouf and Gara Djebilet, specifically between the Dakhla and Rabouni camps.

The assailants stole a black Toyota Hilux pickup truck at around 2 p.m. on Sunday before it was later spotted heading toward Smara camp, where it was reportedly allowed to enter despite the presence of military and security checkpoints.

The incident, the forum said, “has angered Algerian authorities and strained relations between the Algerian regime and the Polisario Front.”

Algerian officials are allegedly trying to suppress information about the attack to avoid public backlash and mounting criticism of the Polisario’s presence in Algeria.

FORSATIN noted that the assault “revives earlier concerns” over kidnappings of foreign nationals near the camps and “the dangerous nexus between terrorist groups, criminal gangs, and certain Polisario officials.”

The group argued that this underscores Algeria’s failure to maintain security in the Tindouf region, especially regarding the protection of foreign workers involved in strategic projects.

The forum also criticized Algeria for having ceded effective control of Tindouf to the Polisario, saying the area has become “off-limits to Algerian citizens” without authorization from Polisario security forces, a situation it described as a “blow to Algerian sovereignty and regional stability.”

Several Algerian opposition figures have also voiced frustration over their government’s continued support for the Polisario, denouncing what they see as the use of state institutions to back separatist agendas under the guise of supporting “the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination.”