France 'concerned' over disappearance of writer Boualem Sansal in Algeria
France says it's "very concerned" about the disappearance of French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, who has not been heard from since he was reportedly taken into police custody upon his arrival in Algeria on Saturday. Sansal is a well-known critic of Algeria’s government and a vocal opponent of Islamic fundamentalism.
Sources told RFI that plainclothes security officers took Sansal, 75, from his car in Dar El Beida, east of the capital, shortly after he travelled to Algiers international airport from France. They said he was being held in police custody.
Family members and local media say he has not answered his phone for six days.
He is reportedly awaiting a summons before the public prosecutor in either Algiers or his hometown of Boumerdès, 50 kilometres away.
While the specific charges remain unclear, the writer could face accusations of “undermining national unity” – a crime that carries a prison sentence under Algerian law.
Sansal obtained French nationality earlier this year, and French President Emmanuel Macron said he was “very concerned” about the writer’s disappearance.
“The services of the state are mobilised to clarify his situation,” Macron’s office said. The president “expresses his unfailing attachment to the freedom of a great writer and intellectual”.
His 2015 dystopian novel 2084: The End of the World, a critique on the alleged Islamisation of France, won the Grand Prix du Roman from the Académie Française.
Read more on RFI English
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