Almost a year after his arrest at Algiers airport, French-Algerian novelist Boualem Sansal, 81, has been pardoned by the Algerian presidency and allowed to leave the country. Sansal, who has been at the center of a tense diplomatic row between Paris and Algiers, departed for Germany on a military plane to receive medical treatment for prostate cancer.

The release came after German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier directly appealed to Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, leveraging his trusted relationship with the Algerian leader. French President Emmanuel Macron thanked Tebboune for the “act of humanity,” highlighting France’s respectful and calm approach in securing Sansal’s freedom.

Sansal had been sentenced to five years in prison in July for remarks deemed to undermine national unity, having long been critical of the Algerian government. His pardon was granted on humanitarian grounds due to his advanced age and fragile health, overriding earlier unsuccessful appeals from France.

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