Algeria Now

Controversy erupts over Daoud's novel after wife's claim

26 Oct 2026 · Source: Algeria Now

Controversy erupts over Daoud's novel after wife's claim — Photo: Photo : images.radio-canada.ca (adresse collée)

French writer Kamel Daoud faces fresh accusations after his wife broke her silence.

Daoud, who won the French Goncourt prize for "Houris", portrays a young girl surviving a terrorist massacre during Algeria's Black Decade. Arban, a survivor of a Tiaret massacre, alleges the book appropriates her experience and that Daoud's wife supplied her medical file without consent.

His wife broke her silence on 25 October 2026, declaring herself innocent and refusing to comment on Daoud. She criticised his positions on Algeria, Islam and Palestine, said she would appear before Algerian justice and stressed philosophical differences with her husband.

Psychiatrist Aïcha Dahdouh, based in Oran, confirmed she never breached medical confidentiality. "The voice of her husband must not silence hers," she said, defending Arban's right to speak.

Daoud, who writes columns for the French weekly Le Point, is known for controversial views on Islam, Gaza, migration and Algeria. The dispute adds a new dimension to his public profile as legal and ethical questions loom.

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