Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has agreed to grant a pardon to Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal and allow his transfer to Germany for medical treatment, following a request from German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the Algerian presidency said on Wednesday.

In a statement, the presidency said President Tebboune “responded positively to the request of President Steinmeier, which drew his attention for its humanitarian nature,” adding that “the German state will take charge of Sansal’s transport and medical care.”

Sansal, a prominent Algerian novelist, was arrested about a year ago and sentenced to five years in prison on charges of “undermining national unity.”