In a few days, twenty Algerian travelers are preparing to celebrate a very sad birthday.
That of their arrival at Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle airport where they have been stranded… for nearly a month!
“They are at the end of their strength.
It becomes dramatic.
Nobody wants to solve their problem ”, laments one of their lawyers, Me Karima Hadj Saïd.
There are currently 25 people sleeping on the floor in one of the airport's still open terminals.
Among them, two children as well as elderly and fragile people.
One of them had a cardiac arrest some time ago, according to the legal representative.
The victim was transported to hospital where she remained for several days before returning to the international area of Roissy.
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At Roissy airport, the endless stopover of these travelers in transit
This surreal situation began on March 2.
Passengers from London (United Kingdom) stop in France in order to catch a plane to Algeria.
But they don't get on board.
“Initially, this is due to an error,” says Me Karima Hadj Said.
“The company had overbooked.
Unfortunately, at the same time, Algeria is taking drastic measures concerning entries into its territory, in order to limit the spread of Covid-19.
It then becomes impossible for these citizens of Algerian nationality to return to their country.
Despite the fact that they were in possession of a negative PCR test when they left and some of them are even vaccinated against the virus.
Roissy (Val-d'Oise).
Twenty-five Algerian nationals have been stranded for a month at Roissy.
They wanted to reach their country, but Algeria took drastic measures concerning the entries into its territory to contain the epidemic. / Instagram
In an attempt to shake things up, the lawyers for these families and single men have filed a request for interim relief with the Paris court.
Through this approach, they hoped to force the company Air Algeria to transport their passengers to their destination, and while waiting to take care of them in terms of accommodation and food.
Aéroports de Paris offers them some means of subsistence
Currently, only Aéroports de Paris (ADP) offers them some means of subsistence, or even other passing travelers.
But the court decision fell on Monday: the court rejected the request.
The judge invoked a case of "force majeure" - in this case the Algerian government measures - which would have prevented Air Algeria from performing its contract.
From now on, only a judgment on the merits could possibly change the situation.
But we will have to wait months and months ... "While there is an emergency, that's why we had opted for the summary", explain the lawyers.
The latter sent several letters to members of the government, in particular the Minister of the Interior and the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
"We are beyond the legal, at some point we will have to use diplomacy," said Me Karima Hadj Saïd.
Until now, the only solution put forward by the Algerian embassy was to send these passengers back to England.
The Algerian council in Créteil (Val-de-Marne), which had come to meet them at the beginning of March in Roissy, had thus insisted on the "need
(Editor's note: for these nationals)
to return to their places of residence while awaiting the reopening of borders.
"
They watch the planes take off for… Algeria
However, for the lawyer of the stranded nationals, "the only solution proposed by the Algerian authorities is not applicable because some of these people have an expired visa, one of them is undocumented".
In addition, a return to Britain would incur a cost that these travelers cannot afford due to the quarantine required by the English authorities.
For the moment, these 25 Algerians therefore continue to live in Terminal 2, watching planes depart for Algiers, which nevertheless continue to take off.
This Wednesday for example, an Air France plane must leave the tarmac for Algeria at 13:50.