فاس نيوز ميديا جريدة الكترونية جهوية تعنى بشؤون و أخبار جهة فاس مكناس – متجددة على مدار الساعة
French judicial authorities issued a definitive refusal on Wednesday to extradite a former Algerian minister, Abdelsselam Bouchouareb, to Algeria, a decision that could further escalate the current diplomatic tensions between the two countries. Since October 2023, Algeria had submitted six extradition requests targeting Bouchouareb, who served as Minister of Industry and Mines from 2014 to 2017 under the presidency of Abdelaziz Bouteflika.
Bouchouareb, 72, has been living in the Alpes-Maritimes region since 2019. He has been sentenced in Algeria to five prison terms of 20 years each, in addition to a sixth case involving economic and financial crimes. However, the investigative chamber of the Aix-en-Provence Court of Appeal definitively halted these proceedings on Wednesday morning, citing the “exceptionally severe consequences” that extradition could have due to the defendant’s age and health condition.
The court stated in its ruling that extradition could violate Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which prohibits torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, as well as Article 5 of the Franco-Algerian extradition treaty signed on January 27, 2019, which allows for the refusal of extradition if it could result in “exceptionally severe consequences” due to the person’s age or health.
Speaking to AFP after the hearing, Bouchouareb, tearful and embraced by his daughter, said, “This is a moment of immense relief for me today, and I never doubted the French justice system.” He added, “Despite this relief, I cannot help but think of my colleagues who were unjustly imprisoned for simply doing their duty, such as former Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia and others.”
Bouchouareb’s lawyer, Benjamin Bohbot, described the decision as “completely logical and puts an end to unfounded, rushed, and politically motivated procedures by the Algerian authorities.” He stated that “extradition would have been a death sentence for this man,” emphasizing that his client is a victim of the “purges” that followed the Bouteflika era.
Bouchouareb is not the only official from the Bouteflika era to be convicted of corruption. The list includes seven former ministers, as well as two former prime ministers, Ahmed Ouyahia and Abdelmalek Sellal.
The lawyer stressed that the decision was “strictly based on legal grounds and was not influenced by the current tensions between Paris and Algiers,” referring to recent disputes between the two countries, including Algeria’s refusal to repatriate its citizens expelled from France. This tension was further highlighted by French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau’s statement on Wednesday morning that France “does not want war with Algeria,” but is facing “aggression” from Algeria.
During the March 5 hearing, the public prosecutor’s office had opposed the extradition request, arguing that removing Bouchouareb, who suffers from serious illnesses, could endanger his life or lead to a rapid and irreversible decline in his health. For her part, Algeria’s lawyer, Anne-Sophie Partaix, asserted that Algerian judicial authorities had provided the “necessary guarantees” to the French judiciary on February 13, stressing that “Bouchouareb stole money from Algerians, was convicted, and must be held accountable for his actions.”
