In Algeria, the president speaking before MPs called French-Algerian novelist Boualem Sansal “a thief sent by France”, an “imposter”, and a “bastard,” in prejudicial comments that say much about the use of the judiciary to silence dissidents in the country where terrorism charges have often been used to crackdown on peaceful opposition figures. Few days […]
Tag: novelist Boualem Sansal
Rights defenders outraged at hefty Algerian sentence against novelist Sansal
Algerian-French novelist Boualem Sanal was sentenced to five years in prison, in a verdict that was denounced by the French president, the political class, intellectuals, and independent human rights defenders. Sansal, 80, was arrested in November upon his landing from France where he had given an interview mentioning that parts of current western Algeria had […]
French president demands release of novelist jailed in Algiers
French President Emmanuel Macron called on Algeria to release prominent novelist Boualem Sansal, who has been jailed by Algerian authorities since mid-November. In keeping Sansal behind bars, Algeria was “dishonoring itself,” Macron told French ambassadors. Macron deplored that Sansal, 75, is denied medical care due to his arrest. “And we, who love the Algerian people […]
Boualem Sansal, latest episode in Algeria’s crackdown on intellectuals
The whereabouts of the renowned Algerian novelist and intellectual Boualem Sansal have been unknown since he landed in Algeria on November 16. His wife and friends fear he has been persecuted because of his ideas, as part of a larger crackdown on dissidents. Sansal, who was traveling from France, is an outspoken critic of the […]



