An Algerian court has sentenced leftist opposition figure Fethi Ghares to two years in prison after convicting him on several charges, including insulting the president, his lawyer told Agence France-Presse on Tuesday.
Abdelghani Badi, Ghares’ attorney, said the Hussein Dey Court in eastern Algiers handed down the sentence “without ordering his immediate detention.” He added that the defense team will appeal the ruling.
The court also imposed a fine of 300,000 dinars (about €2,000), according to defense lawyer Fetta Sadat, who wrote on Facebook that the verdict matched the public prosecutor’s request for a three-year prison term and the same fine.
Sadat said Ghares was convicted of “insulting a public institution” and “spreading false or malicious information likely to harm public order or security.”
In a video posted to his Facebook page after the start of his trial on Oct. 14, Ghares said the charges stemmed from comments he made criticizing President Abdelmadjid Tebboune during a media appearance in which the president discussed plans to review Algeria’s election and party laws. Ghares was arrested at his home on Sept. 29 following those remarks.
Ghares, 50, is one of Algeria’s most prominent left-wing opposition leaders and has been detained several times in recent years over his frequent criticism of President Tebboune and government policies.
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