Archives against French colonialism: Algeria prepares legal offensive Article by Middle East Online

British website Middle East Online has published an article highlighting Algeria’s intention to submit archival records, material proof, and historical testimonies to the African Union legal bodies to demonstrate crimes committed under French colonial rule. Caliber.Az presents the most notable excerpts from the piece.

“Algeria declared its readiness to present archival documents, material evidence and historical testimonies before African Union legal bodies to prove what it described as the “horrific crimes” committed during French colonial rule, marking a significant escalation in its long-running dispute with Paris over historical accountability.

In a speech delivered on his behalf at the 39th African Union summit in Addis Ababa, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune said Algeria was prepared to submit its extensive archives to relevant African legal institutions as part of efforts to classify colonialism as a crime against humanity.

Tebboune said Algeria’s position was grounded in its experience of more than 132 years of settler colonialism, during which French authorities carried out widespread repression to crush Algerian resistance.

He stated that Algeria’s archives document extensive violations, including the use of internationally prohibited methods against civilians, and reiterated that Algeria’s parliament had unanimously passed legislation in late 2025 criminalising colonialism.

The Algerian leadership views this legislative step as part of a broader continental effort to reassess the colonial legacy within the framework of international law, reinforcing calls for formal recognition of the suffering inflicted on colonised peoples.

Relations between Algiers and Paris have long oscillated between cautious rapprochement and renewed confrontation, often driven by disputes over historical memory, migration and security cooperation. By bringing the issue before African legal bodies, Algeria is shifting the debate from a bilateral dispute into a broader continental and international arena.

This move gives Algiers additional moral and legal leverage in its dealings with France, positioning the colonial memory issue not only as a historical grievance but also as a contemporary diplomatic tool.

Analysts say Algeria’s renewed focus on colonial crimes reflects an effort by the political leadership to cement an official historical narrative in which recognition of colonial wrongdoing becomes a prerequisite for full normalisation of relations with France.

Calls for explicit international recognition of colonialism as criminal conduct serve both symbolic and strategic purposes. Beyond historical justice, they strengthen Algeria’s negotiating position in areas such as economic cooperation, security coordination and diplomatic engagement.

France is likely to interpret Algeria’s initiative as a symbolic escalation that could complicate efforts to rebuild trust between the two countries.

In recent years, Paris has adopted a cautious approach that includes limited acknowledgements of certain aspects of its colonial past, but it has stopped short of issuing a formal apology or accepting legal responsibility for colonial crimes, an approach Algeria considers insufficient.

Should African legal efforts evolve into formal legal claims or demands for reparations, tensions could intensify significantly.

Tebboune’s latest remarks suggest Algeria is determined to internationalise the issue, a strategy that may enhance its diplomatic standing across Africa while simultaneously ensuring that its relationship with France remains defined by periodic tension.

For now, the colonial memory dispute continues to place the two countries in a state of strategic ambiguity, neither fully-reconciled nor entirely-estranged, bound together by history yet divided by its unresolved consequences,” the article read.