Tadjadit was accused of spreading “subversive content” and undermining public institutions, and was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment upon his conviction in January 2025. The charges concern Tadjadit’s participation in the #ManichRadhi (I am not satisfied) campaign, which mobilized social media users to express discontent with the government. Between 2019 and 2024, he had been imprisoned multiple times for participating in peaceful protests, and for exercising his right to freedom of expression.

The UN experts stated that the new charges now being brought appear to be based on the same conduct underlying the earlier offenses, raising concerns that the “reclassification” contravenes the prohibition on double jeopardy. The experts emphasized that the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, in Opinion No. 45/2022 adopted in October 2022, had already found that Tadjadit’s right to a fair trial had been violated, and that he and his co-defendants had been punished for exercising their rights to freedom of opinion and expression, contrary to international law. They further stated that the Court of Algiers must halt the trial now scheduled to open, and drop all new charges that could expose Tadjadit to the death penalty.

Amnesty International also criticized the decision of the Algiers Court of Appeals this January to uphold Tadjadit’s conviction on separate charges of “glorifying terrorism,” “offending public bodies,” and “inciting an unarmed gathering,” arguing that these charges stem solely from his expression of opinion through social media posts and poetry. Amnesty International called for his immediate and unconditional release, and for all charges against him to be dropped on the grounds that they arise solely from the exercise of his fundamental rights.

From JURIST, April 30. Used with permission. Internal links added.

Photo: Amnesty International

The retrial, opening this week at the Algiers Court of Appeals, comes after the Supreme Court overturned an appeal ruling against the defendants in November 2024. The Supreme Court found legal flaws in the Court of Appeal ruling, including fair trial violations, claims by the defendants that their confessions were obtained under torture, a lack of prosecution evidence, and significant due process hurdles, such as defense lawyers being unable to cross-examine prosecution witnesses.

Deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, Diana Eltahawy, commented: “The flawed investigation and grossly unfair trial that led to these callous death sentences are a stain on Algeria’s justice system. The new trial represents an important opportunity for the Algerian authorities to end the travesty of justice, redress past violations and ensure accountability without recourse to the death penalty.”

In August 2021, Algerian artist Djamel Ben Ismail was wrongly accused of starting the devastating wildfires that ravaged 18 provinces in Algeria that year, leading to the deaths of around 90 people. Ismail was subsequently tortured and murdered by angry locals, with graphic footage of the incident spreading through various social media platforms. In November 2022, an Algerian court handed down death sentences to 49 people for their roles in the gruesome murder, with 38 death sentences being upheld in October 2023.

Amnesty has criticized the prosecution of these defendants as a violation of the rule of law, stating that the convictions against at least 10 of the accused appear to have been politically motivated, as they were affiliated with the opposition Movement for the Self-determination of Kabylie (MAK), designated as a terrorist organization by authorities. Additionally, some defendants were tried in absentia, a violation of the right to be present at one’s trial. This is a direct contravention of Article 14(3)(d) of the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR), which guarantees the right to a fair trial, and Article 7 of the African Charter on Human & Peoples’ Rights, both of which Algeria is a party to.

As Algeria has not carried out any executions since 1993, the trials will be closely watched by international opponents of the death penalty.

From JURIST, March 2. Used with permission. Internal links added.

Map: Kabyle.com

Macron stated that the historians of the Franco-Cameroonian Commission studied the war that began in 1956, finding that colonial authorities and the French army deliberately used repressive violence against the Cameroonian population. He added that the war continued after Cameroonian independence in 1960, with France supporting state repression in a post-independence power struggle that lasted through 1971.

Macron pledged to open France’s archives and declassify documents pertaining to French actions in Cameroon; however, he did not apologize, nor did he mention any further steps toward reconciliation.

The letter follows release of the report by the Franco-Cameroonian Commission, which traced the history of violence in Cameroon from 1945 to 1971. The commission was initiated by Macron following a trip to Cameroon in 2022. The report found France responsible for numerous atrocities, including sending hundreds of thousands to internment camps and funding paramilitary death squads. Much of the repression was directed towards the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon (UPC), a left-wing political party which was the main force in the independence movement. France denounced the UPC as communist and banned the party, which forced the movement underground, thus beginning a protracted guerrilla war that ended with pro-France Ahmadou Ahidjo as the head of the newly independent state in 1960.

However, French political violence and repression against opposition groups, particularly the UPC, continued after independence. The report details France’s assassination of UPC leaders Paul Momo, Isaac Nyobè Pandjock, Jérémie Ndélélé and Félix Moumié, as well as UPC founder Ruben Um Nyobè. Nyobè preached a doctrine of non-violence, and any mention of him was banned in Cameroon until the 1990s.

The head of the Association of Cameroonian Veterans and former UPC fighter, Mathieu Njassep, said the acknowledgement is a welcome step, but urged France to go further and consider reparations.

This acknowledgment comes in sharp contrast to France’s previous denial of its atrocities during the Cameroon war, despite established historical consensus. Macron has also acknowledged French responsibility in the Rwandan Genocide, crimes committed during the Algerian War, and the 1944 Thiaroye massacre in Senegal, making the most recent acknowledgment the latest chapter in Macron’s careful and calculated moves toward admission of France’s violent colonial and neo-colonial history in Africa.

From JURIST, Aug. 14. Used with permission. Internal links added.

Image: Wikipedia

“Sentencing French journalist Christophe Gleizes to seven years in prison on terrorism charges over an interview is a clear indication of the government’s intolerance of press freedom,” said Sara Qudah, CPJ’s regional director for the Middle East and North Africa. The CPJ has demanded Gleizes’ immediate and unconditional release. The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs further called the ruling “harsh” and confirmed it has requested consular access to Gleizes.

The conviction comes amid broader concerns over suppression of dissent in Algeria. In April, Amnesty International urged the release of Mohamed Tadjadit, a poet and activist, who is serving a five-year prison sentence for poems and social media posts critical of the government. Amnesty condemned the charges as politically motivated and called for an end to the criminalization of peaceful expression. Similarly, Human Rights Watch has reported a surge in arbitrary travel bans targeting Algerian activists and government critics. The bans, often imposed without formal charges or explanation, are part of what rights groups describe as a growing pattern of repression.

Most recently, the Algiers Court of Appeal upheld a verdict against French-Algerian writer and well-known government critic Boualem Sansal this week, who is set to serve a five-year prison sentence for threatening “state security.”

From JURIST, July 2. Used with permission.

Map: Kabyle.com

More than 600 asylum seekers and migrants have gone missing after being intercepted by the Tunisian Coastguard in the Mediterranean Sea. The group was picked up while trying to make it to Europe on the night of March 16, along with 18 dead bodies, and hasn’t been heard from since. Monitoring groups suspect they were dumped in Tunisia’s desert border regions with Libya and Algeria—a common practice. The EU has supported Tunisia in recent years to crack down on migration, even as reports of abuse have multiplied.

From The New Humanitarian, April 4.

Map: Google

Palestine has been a Permanent Observer State at the UN since 2012, when the General Assembly passed a resolution granting it that status amid a lack of Security Council support for full membership. As a Permanent Observer State, a status shared with the Holy See, Palestine can participate in all UN proceedings, but it cannot vote on draft resolutions or decisions. Palestine has been seeking UN membership since it submitted its application in 2011, and recently pushed the Security Council to vote on its status.

The UN charter says that membership is open to “peace-loving states which accept the obligations” of the charter. To be admitted as a full member, a state’s application must be approved by the Security Council with at least nine votes and no vetos, as well as a two-thirds vote in the General Assembly. More than 100 states have been admitted to the UN using this procedure.

The US defended its veto, saying it was necessary to promote negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. It claimed that unilateral recognition at the UN would jeopardize the two-state solution, saying that “premature actions here in New York, even with the best intentions, will not achieve statehood for the Palestinian people.” It argued that reforms were necessary “to help establish the attributes of readiness for statehood,” including addressing Hamas’ rule over Gaza. The US insisted: “This vote does not reflect opposition to Palestinian statehood, but instead is an acknowledgment that it will only come from direct negotiations between the parties.”

Palestine’s representative at the UN, Riyad Mansour, said that voting to admit Palestine as a full member would “revive the hope that has been lost among our people” and reestablish a path toward realizing a two-state solution. He thanked the majority of Security Council members who voted for full membership, stating that they “have risen to…this historic moment, and they have stood on the side of justice and freedom and hope, in line with the ethical and humanitarian and legal principles that must govern our world and in line with simple logic.” Mansour expressed determination, saying the US veto “will not break our will.” He added: “The State of Palestine is inevitable. It is real. Perhaps they see it as far away, but we see it as near, and we are the faithful.”

Israel applauded the US veto, with its UN ambassador Gilad Erdan thanking President Biden in a post on X (formerly Twitter). Erdan described the US veto as preventing a “destructive move” to “impose a Palestinian terrorist state,” and told the Security Council that the vote “will only embolden Palestinian rejectionism even more and make peace almost impossible.” He criticized the Security Council for not specifically condemning Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, claiming it “refuse[d] to do the moral and right thing” and saying that speaking to the Council was “like talking to a brick wall.”

From Jurist, April 18. Used with permission.

Note: Some 140 countries have already recognized the state of Palestine since it won Permanent Observer State status. (AP)

Image: Nicolas Raymond via Flickr

All three countries are led by military juntas after undergoing coups d’etat, which were condemned by ECOWAS, and resulted in their suspension from the bloc. The bloc has been particularly active in opposing the coup in Niger, imposing sanctions, and approving military intervention—although it has yet to follow through with any military action.

All three countries are also facing internal insurgencies—although not exclusively from jihadists. The day before announcing withdrawal from ECOWAS, Mali announced that it is abandoning a peace deal with ethnic Tuareg separatist rebels in the north of the country. The 2015 Agreement for Peace & Reconciliation in Mali was brokered by Algeria, which Mali now accuses of “interference” on behalf of the separatists, summoning the ambassador last month over the matter.

All three countries have also moved closer under their respective military regimes to Russia, whose Wagner Group mercenary force is backing up a new Malian government offensive against the Tuaregs. (Al Jazeera, Jurist) A contingent of Russian soliders was just flown to Burkina Faso to provide personal security for junta leader Ibrahim Traore. (Sahara Reporters)

Map: Wikivoyage

In 2011, Switzerland began criminal proceedings against Khaled Nezzar, on the basis of a criminal complaint from TRIAL International, invoking the doctrine of “universal jurisdiction” for grave war crimes. The OAG dropped the charges in 2017 after reasoning that the Algerian civil war was not an “internal armed conflict” as defined by law. However, the Federal Criminal Court determined on appeal that the hostilities constituted an internal armed conflict due to their level of violence, allowing the charges to be reinstated.

Nezzar stands accused of violating Article 3 of the First Geneva Convention of 1949, Article 4 and Article 6 of the Second Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions of 1977, Articles 108 and 109 of the Swiss Military Criminal Code, and Article 264a of the Swiss Criminal Code, which penalizes crimes against humanity.

TRIAL International reacted to the indictment on the social media, saying they welcomed the news, which comes almost 12 years after they filed their initial criminal complaint.

From Jurist, Aug. 29. Used with permission.

Map: PCL

More than half of the total 6,877 deaths recorded worldwide by the project occurred among those fleeing or transiting the MENA region. Perilous sea journeys accounted for the majority of fatalities, particularly among those departing from Lebanon to Greece and Italy. At least 174 deaths were reported on this route alone, comprising nearly half of the overall death toll on the Eastern Mediterranean route. Many of the deceased remain unidentified, with up to 84% of recovered remains yet to be identified.

Land routes also posed significant risks, with 203 recorded deaths on North African routes, including treacherous crossings of the Sahara Desert, and an additional 825 deaths on Middle Eastern land routes. Libya had the highest number of recorded deaths, followed by Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Egypt.

In summer 2022, Syrian refugees were stranded on an island in the Evros River between Greece and Turkey. Despite international attention, no rescue efforts were made by either country. Instead, only the International Rescue Committee (IRC) advocated for their evacuation, while the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) expressed concerns for the some 40 stranded individuals. [After weeks, the death of a child on the island finally prompted Greek authorities to organize an evacuation in August.]

In light of these findings, the IOM called for increased international and regional cooperation, as well as resources, to address the humanitarian crisis and prevent further loss of life. This aligns with Objective Eight of the UN’s Global Compact for Migration, which emphasizes the need for collaborative efforts to ensure the safety and well-being of migrants.

From Jurist, June 14. Used with permission.

Photo: Flavio Gasperini/SOS Mediterranee via InfoMigrants

According to Amnesty, at least six of the accused were targeted due to their involvement with the Kabylia Self-Determination Movement (MAK). Amnesty noted that five told the court they were subjected to torture or ill-treatment during their detention, including electrocution, water-boarding, and rape threats. In several of the cases, the defendants were tried in absentia and not notified of their charges. Others were accused and convicted despite not being in Algeria at the time of the lynching, having been exiled to France due to their connection with the MAK.

Amnesty’s deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa, Amna Guellali, accused Algerian authorities of “using the lynching incident as a tool to prosecute state critics and members of the MAK political group.”

Although the death sentences are likely to be reduced to life sentences due to a moratorium on executions in Algeria, Amnesty harshly condemned the threat of execution. Guellali stated, “By resorting to the death penalty in mass proceedings following unfair trials, the Algerian authorities not only reveal their utter disregard for human life, but also send a chilling message about how justice is delivered in Algeria today.”

The charges stemmed from events that took place during the intense wildfires that swept the Kabylie region during the summer of 2021. A mob lynched Ben Ismail in the provincial city of Tizi Ouzou over false accusations that he had started the fires, which came amid an extreme heat wave. Ben Ismail had been in the region to help extinguish the flames as a volunteer fire-fighter.

The MAK, a civil movement seeking independence for the Kabylie region, was labelled a “terrorist” organization by Algerian authorities in June 2021.

Amnesty International called for all convictions and sentences in the case to be overturned, and for allegations of torture and ill-treatment to be investigated. Amnesty said new trials must be held for all of those “convicted in their absence or prosecuted over their political affiliations.”

From Jurist, Jan. 10. Used with permission.

Map: Kabyle.com