[3] There have been problems with illegal immigration from Algeria to Greece in recent years, and with Algerian trafficking of Sub-Saharan Africans seeking to enter the European Union.

[11] In 826, Ziyadat Allah the Emir of Ifriqiya sent an army that conquered the southern shore of the island and laid siege to Syracuse, but was forced to abandon the attempt due to plague.

[15] The Norman Kingdom of Sicily developed a vibrant culture, and became a gateway that opened the world of Greek philosophy and Muslim science to Western Europe.

Greece was among the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with Algeria after its independence in 1962, by upgrading the then Greek Consulate General in Algiers to an embassy in 1963.

[27] In March 2008, the Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis visited Algiers where she met with Algeria's President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and agreed to boost bilateral economic cooperation.

[28] In a message to Greek president Karolos Papoulias, Bouteflika said he wished to develop and deepen relationships between the two countries and to consult over issues related to security in the Mediterranean region.

In the same year, Greek exports to Algeria amounted to $50.78 million, consisting mainly of cereals and related derivatives, tobacco products, pharmaceuticals, medical and non-ferrous minerals.

[31] As Spain and Italy are taking increasingly tough measures to restrict illegal migrants from the Middle East and Africa, growing numbers are entering the EU through Greece.

Newly arrived refugees from conflict zones in the Middle East and Africa are being exploited by established gangs of Nigerians, Moroccans and Algerians, who engaged in street battles in downtown Athens in 2008.

[33] In May 2009, 500 illegal immigrants in Athens, mostly from Algeria and Tunisia, were besieged by a crowd of Neo-Nazi Greeks inside an abandoned eight floor building with no water and electricity.

[35] The U.S. Department of State describes Algeria as a transit country for men and women trafficked from Sub-Saharan Africa to Europe for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation and forced labor.