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German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has appealed to Algeria’s leader to grant clemency to the Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, who was sentenced in March to five years in prison for allegedly undermining national unity.
Steinmeier’s office confirmed on Monday that he had urged President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to approve a pardon as “a humanitarian gesture.”
Citing the author’s age and deteriorating health, Steinmeier also offered to have Sansal relocated to Germany for medical treatment.
He said such a move would reflect the strong ties between the two presidents and the positive relationship between their nations.
The Algerian presidency acknowledged the request, and the appeal was also broadcast on national television.
Analysts in Algeria suggested the public confirmation indicated a potentially favourable outcome for Sansal.
France has similarly requested leniency for the acclaimed writer, and his conviction has contributed to ongoing tension between Paris and Algiers.
Sansal’s family has raised concerns over his prostate cancer treatment while in custody.
A renowned figure in contemporary North African literature, he is well known for criticising both terrorist movements and the Algerian authorities.
His case stems from comments made to the far-right publication Frontières, where he alleged that France wrongly ceded Moroccan land to Algeria during its colonial rule from 1830 to 1962—a statement viewed by Algerian officials as an affront to state sovereignty and one aligning with Morocco’s territorial claims.
