TAMAZGHA (TAMURT) – Mohamed Lamine Belghit, a history teacher in Algeria, declared on May 1, 2025, on Sky News Arabia, that “Amazigh culture does not exist” and that it is a “Franco-Zionist creation.”
This anti-Amazigh hate speech shocked not only the Amazigh people of Algeria but also a segment of the non-Amazigh population of the country. It was considered all the more scandalous because it was uttered by a teacher.
From a legal standpoint, Mr. Belghit’s statements directly contradict several provisions of the Algerian Constitution, which state, in particular, that Algeria is an “Arab and Amazigh country,” that “Amazigh identity” is a fundamental component of its identity, and that the Amazigh language has the status of a “national and official language” (Article 4). Consequently, on May 3, 2025, the court in Dar-El-Beida, near Algiers, ordered Mr. Belghit’s arrest and pretrial detention for “undermining national unity and disseminating hate speech and discrimination.” On July 3, 2025, the court sentenced him to five years in prison. On October 7, the Algiers Court of Appeal reduced his sentence to three years in prison and two years suspended. On December 11, 2025, the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, making his conviction final. A few days later, on December 15, to everyone’s surprise, the Algerian head of state, Mr. Tebboune, granted him a pardon, and Mr. Belghit regained his freedom.
The Congrès Mondial Amazigh / Amazigh World Congress (CMA) first noted that Mr. Belghit benefited from exceptionally swift legal proceedings. He spent only two months in pretrial detention, whereas Amazigh detainees, and particularly Kabyle political prisoners, have almost all experienced pretrial detention periods exceeding 16 months on average.
By granting his “presidential pardon” to a dangerous racist who wants to erase the existence of the indigenous Amazigh people, whose roots extend back millennia in this country, the Algerian head of state demonstrates his complete lack of solidarity with the Amazighs. Clearly, for Mr. Tebboune, the Amazighs deserve no consideration whatsoever. On the other hand, he supports Mr. Belghit, whom he undoubtedly considers a good Algerian patriot, an Islamist-pan-Arabist, and a denier of everything Amazigh.
Meanwhile, hundreds of Amazighs, mostly Mozabites and Kabyles, including those sentenced to death, languish arbitrarily in Algerian prisons following trials that violate all minimum standards of justice. In Algeria, anti-Amazigh hatred is not limited to a few verbal slips; it is an institution of the state.
The CMA strongly condemns the untimely release of Mr. Belghit, ordered by the Algerian head of state. The CMA considers this an indirect endorsement by Mr. Tebboune of racist and anti- Amazigh hate speech. This is a grave error on the part of the Algerian head of state, which the
CMA will denounce to international bodies.
The CMA will relentlessly pursue its fight against racism, discrimination, and injustices inflicted upon the Amazigh people, and for their individual and collective rights. Free the Amazigh political prisoners and prisoners of conscience in Algeria.
Paris, 14/12/2975 – 26/12/2025
The Board of CMA.
 - Mohamed Lamine Belghit, a history teacher in Algeria, declared on May 1, 2025, on Sky News Arabia, that "Amazigh culture does not exist" and that it is a "Franco-Zionist creation." This anti-Amazigh hate speech shocked not only the Amazigh people of Algeria but also a segment of the non-Amazigh population of the country. It was considered all the more scandalous because it was uttered by a teacher.){kind=link}