Algeria has granted a humanitarian pardon to French-Algerian novelist Boualem Sansal, releasing the 76-year-old writer after a year in prison a case that drew international condemnation and strained ties between Algiers and Paris.
Sansal, best known for his outspoken criticism of authoritarianism, was arrested in November 2024 upon returning to Algiers from France. He had been serving a five-year sentence for “undermining national unity” under Algeria’s anti-terrorism laws.
The writer’s imprisonment sparked global outrage as his health deteriorated due to cancer. Appeals for his release from the European Parliament, French President Emmanuel Macron, and authors including Salman Rushdie went unanswered for months.
German diplomacy breaks the deadlock
In a diplomatic breakthrough, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier successfully appealed for Sansal’s release after French efforts stalled.
Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune granted the pardon on humanitarian grounds, saying Germany would take responsibility for Sansal’s medical care.
President Macron later thanked his German counterpart for the “decisive mediation,” noting that Berlin had acted as a neutral intermediary after relations between Algeria and France grew tense.
A case rooted in politics
Sansal’s arrest came after he gave an interview questioning Algeria’s borders, suggesting colonial France had taken territory from Morocco remarks made shortly after Paris endorsed Morocco’s plan for Western Sahara.
The incident deepened political rifts between Algeria and France and highlighted what rights groups describe as a wider crackdown on dissent in Algeria.
For now, Sansal’s release is being seen as both a humanitarian gesture and a diplomatic compromise, made possible through quiet mediation by Germany.
