The jury of the Tahar Ouettar Prize has revealed the five novels shortlisted for the 2026 edition of the competition. The finalists were selected following a thorough review of the longlist. The works in contention, listed alphabetically, are: "Al-Asir" by Mohamed Dahou, "Blass Darem" by Boumediene Belkebir, "Khayal Masmoum" by Mohamed Habib Menadi, "Qarat Al-Hamam" by Salah Eddine Tidjini, and "Wakil Al-Shaitan" by Djillali Amrani. Established to honor the legacy of the prominent Algerian author Tahar Ouettar, the award seeks to elevate the status of the novel in the national cultural landscape. Public attention is now focused on the final phase of the competition to see which book will be crowned the winner.