The Algerian court sentenced the 80-year-old writer to five years in prison after accusing him of pouring the territorial integrity of the country.
Boualem Sansal was arrested last year after he said in an interview with the extremely right -wing French media that France had given too much land to Algeria and too little Morocco during the colonial age.
He also said that the disputed territory of Western Sahara was a historic part of Morocco.
During his detention, the French-Algerian author spent time in hospital for poor health.
His case encouraged a wave of support for the intellectual and politician, including Nigerian Nobel Prize -winning author Wole Soyinka and French President Emmanuel Macron.
“Successful detention of Boualem Sansal, on top of his worrying health situation, is one of the elements that need to be resolved before trust [between our countries] It can be completely renewed, “Macron said back in February.
The writer finds himself at the center of deepening diplomatic order, according to his friends.
“He was reluctant to become a coach in a problematic relationship between Paris and Algeria,” the committee of his supporters in France said recently.
Algeria was once a valued French colony and fought against the dog’s dog war eventually won his sovereignty in 1962.
Relations have long been strained between the two countries, but last year they reached the new low, when France supported the claim of Morocco towards the Western Sahara, where Algeria supported the polisario group that struggles for territory independence.
Algeria responded a little, pulling his ambassador to Paris.
Three years earlier, Algeria interrupted diplomatic ties with Morocco.
Following the judgment of the court on Wednesday, Sansal’s lawyer declared himself President Algeria Abdelmadjid Tebboune to show the writer “humanity”.
Sansal is known for his anti-Islamist attitudes and is an open critic of the Algerian government.
His villains say that the dear is the far right that alleviates their prejudices.
The far right French leader of Marine Le Pen called Sansal “Fighter for freedom and brave opponents of Islamism.”
His age has been previously reported as 75, but his publishers Gallimard say it is actually 80.
Additional Reporting Marcus Erbe
