An Algerian court has sentenced opposition politician Fethi Ghares to two years in prison over a Facebook post deemed insulting to President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, his lawyer told AFP on Tuesday, October 21.

Ghares, a well-known secular leftist and critic of the government, was found guilty “for remarks concerning the president,” according to his lawyer, Abdelghani Badi.

Badi confirmed that Ghares was not immediately detained following the verdict and that the defence team plans to appeal the decision. “He was not present at the hearing,” the lawyer added.

Another member of his legal team, lawyer Fetta Sadat, revealed on Facebook that Ghares was also fined 300,000 dinars (about $2,300). Prosecutors had reportedly sought a three-year sentence along with the same fine.

Sadat said Ghares was charged with “insulting a state institution” and “spreading false or malicious information likely to harm public order or security.”

The 50-year-old opposition figure has faced similar charges in the past. In May 2024, he was convicted in another case and handed a one-year prison sentence, though he was not jailed pending appeal to the Supreme Court.

Ghares was previously arrested in 2021 and sentenced for “insulting the president”, accusations that, like the current case, were based on posts made on Facebook.

A member of Algeria’s secular leftist opposition, Ghares joined the pro-democracy Hirak movement in 2019, which played a key role in ousting longtime president Abdelaziz Bouteflika. His party, the Democratic and Social Movement, the successor to the Algerian Communist Party, was officially banned by authorities in February 2023.