Documenting Colonial Environmental Crimes: A New Interministerial Committee Initiative

The Minister of Environment and Quality of Life, Kaoutar Krikou, and the Minister of Mujahideen and Rights Holders, Abdelmalek Tachrifet, chaired the second session of the Interministerial Committee on Environmental Memory in Algiers. Held under the theme "Environmental Memory: Witnessing Land and Documented Crimes," the event was attended by the Minister of State and Rector of the Great Mosque of Algiers, Dr. Mohamed El Mamoun El Kacimi El Hassani. Krikou stated that the project seeks to archive French colonial crimes against nature and humanity through scientific evidence and historical accounts, focusing on the long-term effects of nuclear testing, chemical weapons, landmines, and scorched-earth policies. The session highlighted laboratory analyses of sites damaged by napalm, as part of a national effort to compile a comprehensive dossier proving colonial accountability under international environmental protection conventions.