{"id":19446,"date":"2025-06-26T16:11:41","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T16:11:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/?p=19446"},"modified":"2025-06-26T16:11:41","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T16:11:41","slug":"algerian-historian-faces-7-year-sentence-over-controversial-amazigh-remarks-on-emirati-tv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.watanserb.com\/en\/2025\/06\/26\/algerian-historian-faces-7-year-sentence-over-controversial-amazigh-remarks-on-emirati-tv\/","title":{"rendered":"Algerian Historian Faces 7-Year Sentence Over Controversial Amazigh Remarks on Emirati TV"},"content":{"rendered":"

Watan<\/strong><\/em>-The Dar El Beida Court in the eastern suburb of Algiers has requested a 7-year prison sentence for historian Mohamed El Amine Belghith over statements he made on an Emirati TV channel that questioned the legitimacy of the Amazigh identity.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n

Belghith, who was accompanied by a large legal team, is being prosecuted on charges of:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • \n

    Spreading hate speech and discrimination through information technology,<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    Deliberately promoting harmful information likely to disrupt public order, and<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  • \n

    Undermining national unity and territorial integrity.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    The trial followed an earlier decision by Algerian authorities to drop felony-level charges against Belghith, interpreted by many as an attempt to ease public pressure after widespread outrage over his pretrial detention.<\/p>\n

    Several members of parliament had publicly called for his release, citing his patriotism, his scholarly work, and the fact that he is the son of a martyr. They argued that his background should weigh in favor of clemency.<\/p>\n

    Belghith Claims Media Manipulation<\/h3>\n

    According to leaked details from the investigation, Belghith told authorities he was misrepresented due to \u201ceditorial manipulation\u201d by Sky News Arabia, the Emirati channel that aired the interview. He claimed he had no recording to prove the content was edited to distort his meaning.<\/p>\n

    Belghith said several remarks were omitted from his segment, especially those concerning the Amazigh identity, and that the interviewer had asked him a \u201cloaded question.\u201d His responses, he said, were based on historic academic research.<\/p>\n

    Regarding his controversial label of some Algerians in France as \u201cHarkis\u201d (a term often used for traitors or collaborators), Belghith clarified that he was referring to individuals who opposed Algeria\u2019s national interests in the past but now claim patriotism after securing French residency. He denied targeting all Algerian migrants.<\/p>\n

    He said the interview was recorded on March 5 at Sky News Arabia\u2019s studio in Algiers, after a journalist contacted him to speak on a segment titled \u201cAlgerian-French Relations.\u201d<\/p>\n

    \"Belghith
    Mohamed El Amine Belghith<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    Backlash and Charges<\/h3>\n

    Belghith\u2019s remarks\u2014claiming that Amazigh<\/a> identity is a \u201cFrench-Zionist ideological project\u201d and that Berbers are of Phoenician Arab origin\u2014sparked intense backlash from cultural, political, and academic circles in Algeria.<\/p>\n

    He said in the interview:\u201cThere is no such thing as Amazigh culture. It\u2019s a French-Zionist ideological project. The Berbers are ancient Arabs, according to the consensus of great historians.\u201d<\/p>\n

    He further added:\u201cThe Amazigh issue, as agreed upon by the rational voices of Libya, Algeria, and Morocco, is a political project meant to undermine Maghreb unity and serve French neocolonial aims.\u201d
    \u201cWe trace our origins to the Phoenician Canaanites\u2014this is the real root of our distinction from internal and external adversaries.\u201d<\/p>\n

    His statements were widely condemned as an attack on one of the three pillars of Algerian national identity, as defined by the Constitution: Islam, Arabism, and Amazighity.<\/p>\n