French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, detained in Algeria for nearly a year, was pardoned for humanitarian reasons by President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and arrived in Berlin on November 12, 2025. Welcomed by the French ambassador to Germany, he expresses gratitude to France and prepares for medical examinations. This release results from diplomatic efforts led by Germany, with French support.
Boualem Sansal, aged 81, was arrested on November 16, 2024, in Algiers and sentenced to five years in prison for undermining national unity. Nearly a year later, on November 12, 2025, he was released following a pardon granted by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, at the request of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. A German military plane departed Algiers in the late afternoon to transport him to Berlin, where he arrived shortly after 9 p.m.
French Ambassador to Germany François Delattre welcomed him at the airport. “Extremely happy to be free, very warm and very grateful to France and its president for their constant support,” Delattre told Le Figaro. Sansal, who suffers from health issues, must now undergo examinations at the German army hospital in Berlin. His wife will join him on Thursday from Algeria.
Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone with the writer during his flight to Germany. The Élysée praised “the trusted third party that is Germany” and noted that “arm-wrestling does not work” with Algeria, favoring an approach of “respect, calm, and exigence.” Steinmeier thanked Tebboune for this “important humanitarian gesture.” Numerous French figures, including Bruno Retailleau and Rachida Dati, expressed relief while calling for the release of journalist Christophe Gleizes, still detained.
This case highlights diplomatic tensions between Paris and Algiers, eased by Franco-German mediation. Sansal, known for his critiques of Islamism and the Algerian regime, embodies the fight for freedom of expression.