Watan-On Tuesday, June 24, the Public Prosecutor’s Office at the Algiers Court of Appeal requested a 10-year prison sentence and a fine of one million Algerian dinars against French-Algerian author Boualem Sansal, during his appeal hearing.
Sansal, 75 years old, appeared before Judge Naima Dahmani, as reported by Kasbah Tribune, wearing gray pants and shirt, clean-shaven, and surrounded by elite members of the National Gendarmerie and Police. He chose to represent himself without a lawyer.
The session began at 9:30 a.m., when the judge asked, “Can you hear me?” Sansal replied, “Yes, but I will answer in French,” to which the judge agreed, while she continued questioning him in Arabic.
The judge reminded him of the charges, mainly his statements and writings deemed hostile to Algeria, asking for his response. He said:
“Nothing. I am a free man. I speak to everyone, and I speak in France, not in Algeria. I am French, and all my statements were made in France.”
She questioned him about a controversial interview with far-right channel “Frontière”, where he discussed Algerian borders, especially the western ones. Sansal explained:“I simply said that the current borders were drawn by the French and are remnants of colonialism. I reminded that the African Union agreed post-independence to respect colonial-era borders.”
The court also reviewed correspondence with former French ambassador Xavier Driencourt and ex-minister Hubert Védrine, highlighting a remark: “We have oil and [General] Chengriha.” Sansal responded:“Those were private, sometimes humorous conversations. I don’t see the danger.”
When asked about ties to the separatist movement MAK (considered terrorist in Algeria), Sansal said:“I speak to everyone.”
The judge then asked:“Have you ever visited Israel?”
He replied:“Yes, in 2012.”
She asked:“In what context?”
He said:“I was invited jointly by the PLO and the Israeli authorities.”
Asked if he still stood by his past statements, Sansal replied calmly:“Yes, I still believe in them. But people can change their minds.”
When the judge asked why his writings focus on politics rather than culture, he remained silent.
In his closing argument, the public prosecutor noted Sansal’s background:“Born, raised, educated, and treated in Algeria, yet he has never shown gratitude to his homeland.”
He then requested the maximum sentence: 10 years in prison and a fine of one million dinars.
In his final words, Sansal said:“This is a trial of literature. It makes no sense. The Algerian Constitution guarantees freedom of conscience, speech, and opinion—yet here I stand before you.”
The appeal concerns the original ruling issued on March 27, 2025, by the Dar El Beida Criminal Court, sentencing Sansal to 5 years in prison and a 500,000 dinar fine.
Sansal has been detained since November 16, upon arrival at Algiers Airport, following statements made to a far-right French channel where he questioned Algeria’s ownership of its western borders. He was placed in pre-trial detention under Article 87 bis of Algeria’s Penal Code, which treats “actions threatening state security” as terrorism.
The case worsened tensions between Algeria and France, especially after French President Emmanuel Macron declared:“Algeria should be ashamed to jail a writer.”
This drew strong backlash from Algeria, where President Abdelmadjid Tebboune responded by labeling Sansal:“An anonymous thief claiming that half of Algeria belongs to another country.”
A brief hope for Sansal’s release followed a phone call between Macron and Tebboune in April, but it was crushed after the Amir DZ case reignited hostilities between the two governments.
Sansal, a former high-ranking Algerian official (ex-director of industry in the early 2000s), is notorious for describing Algerian revolutionaries as terrorists and for espousing extreme views on Islam under the guise of combating Islamism.
He is also known for his vocal support of Israel, which became even more visible after the October 7, 2023 Al-Aqsa Flood operation, through his writings and repeated statements.
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