German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has appealed to Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to pardon Franco-Algerian novelist Boualem Sansal, offering him relocation to Germany for medical care due to his fragile health. The move has drawn international attention, highlighting the plight of a leading voice in North African Francophone literature and the ongoing tensions between freedom of expression and political authority.
Steinmeier's office said he had asked Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune to pardon Sansal as "a humanitarian gesture."
"Given Sansal's advanced age and fragile health condition," Steinmeier also "offered Sansal's relocation to Germany and subsequent medical care in our country."
A pardon for Sansal "would be an expression of humanitarian spirit and political foresight," said Steinmeier.
"It would reflect my long-standing personal relationship with President Tebboune and the good relations between our countries."
Paris has also called on Algeria to show leniency to Sansal, and the writer's conviction has further strained tense France-Algeria relations.
The writer's family has highlighted his treatment for prostate cancer.
A prize-winning figure in North African modern Francophone literature, Sansal is known for his criticism of Algerian authorities as well as of Islamists.
The case arose after Sansal told the far-right outlet Frontieres that France had unjustly transferred Moroccan territory to Algeria during the colonial period from 1830 to 1962, a claim Algeria views as a challenge to its sovereignty and that aligns with longstanding Moroccan territorial assertions.
With AFP
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