Algerian radio journalist and blogger Abdelkrim Zeghileche could face a six-month prison sentence after a Constantine court convicted him on May 19, 2026, of “hate speech” and “incitement to unlawful assembly.”
The decision followed a Facebook post by Zeghileche proposing a legal framework to support victims of political repression.
Zeghileche, the founder and director of the independent online radio station Radio Sarbacane remains free, pending enforcement of the sentence and the outcome of several other prosecutions. Since 2014, Zeghileche has faced nearly 20 criminal cases linked to his journalism, political commentary, and online expression, including on his Facebook page, where he has 44,000 followers.
Judicial harassment against Zeghileche intensified in 2026. Between March 30 and June 4, he was scheduled to appear in court for five cases related to his social media posts and political commentary, two local journalists who know Zeghiliche told CPJ on condition of anonymity, for fear of reprisal.
On June 1, 2026, prosecutors sought a two-year prison sentence in two separate cases alleging hate speech, harm to the national interest, and insulting President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. Between March 30, and June 4, 2026, additional hearings addressed charges of hate speech, discrimination, incitement to unlawful assembly, and insulting a public institution.
On September 30, 2025, Zeghileche was sentenced to one year and fined 100,000 Algerian dinars (US$751), although he did not go to prison. In December 2022, the Constantine Court of Appeal upheld two prison sentences against him, according to the two local journalists. On June 8, 2022, he was sentenced to one year in prison and fined 50,000 Algerian dinars ($US375) over a Facebook post referring to the “overthrow of the regime,” but remained free while appealing the verdict.
On January 24, 2022, authorities arrested Zeghileche and placed him in pre-trial detention on terrorism-related charges, including glorifying terrorism, using information technologies to disseminate terrorist ideas, and publishing information harmful to national interests. He was granted provisional release on March 30, 2022, according to the two local journalists.
On June 23, 2020, authorities arrested Zeghileche over Facebook posts criticizing President Tebboune and advocating political organization, according to the local journalists. On August 24, 2020, a Constantine court sentenced him to two years in prison and a fine of 100,000 Algerian dinars (US$751). On appeal, the sentence was reduced to one year, including six months to be served and six months suspended. He was released on December 23, 2020, according to the local journalists who spoke with CPJ.
Zeghileche had previously been detained in late 2019 following a complaint filed by the governor of Constantine and was sentenced in January 2020 to six months in prison and a fine over allegations related to unlicensed broadcasting. In late 2018, authorities imprisoned him for two months on charges including unlicensed broadcasting, insulting the president, insulting a public institution, and incitement to unlawful assembly. Authorities also shut down Radio Sarbacane, confiscated equipment, and seized an unrelated technology company owned by Zeghileche that operated from the same building, according to the two local journalists.
Authorities began targeting Zeghileche shortly after Radio Sarbacane started hosting opposition voices and critical political debates. Since 2014, he has been subjected to repeated police summonses, interrogations, prosecutions, and periods of detention linked to his journalism and political expression.
As of June 2026, Zeghileche has 11 cases pending before Algeria’s Supreme Court, carrying a combined potential sentence of five years in prison and 5 million Algerian dinars in fines ($37,500), said the two local journalists.
CPJ emailed Algerian Ministry of Interior requesting comment on Zeghileche’s cases but did not receive a response.