Press Release
The investigating judge at the Dar El Beida Court in Algiers ordered, on Saturday, November 23, 2024, the temporary detention of the writer Boualem Sansal (75 years old), pending investigation on charges related to harming the national interest and undermining the unity of the nation.
This decision stems from statements he made to a French magazine, where he discussed the geographical borders between Algeria and Morocco during the French colonial period. He also criticized the Algerian regime, stating that “the Algerian regime is a military system that invented the Polisario Front to destabilize Morocco.”
Boualem Sansal was arrested by security forces on Saturday, November 16, 2024, at Houari Boumediene International Airport upon his arrival from Paris. He was supposed to head to his home in Boumerdes directly from the airport. He was detained for questioning until he appeared before the public prosecutor at the Dar El Beida Court in Algiers, who subsequently referred him to the investigating judge. The judge then ordered his temporary detention at Koléa Prison pending further investigation on Saturday, November 23, 2024.
