(Morocco, 1975) is an award-winning writer, poet, playwright and curator. His 1996 debut, Bruiloft aan zee (Wedding By the Sea), was an immediate success. His second novel, De langverwachte (The Long-awaited) won him the prestigious 2003 Libris Literature Award. Benali's subjects vary, but sports and the migrant who never really feels at home are recurring themes. He has written novels about his great passion of running, about his travels, and about migrants' cultural identity (Bad Boy). His work has been published internationally. Recent books include the novel Paradijsvogel boven Hoge Woerd (Bird of Paradise over Hoge Woerd, 2022) and Het andere verhaal (The Other Story, 2022), an essay about his research into 75 years of modern Moroccan art.

works as a psychiatrist and writes mostly poetry. Poems and essays by her have previously appeared in De Gids, Tirade, Hollands Maandblad, Poeziekrant, Trouw and Medisch Contact, and on various online platforms. She was a finalist in the 2022 El-Hizjra literature prize, poetry category. In December 2024, her essay De dagen van binnen (The Days Within) will be published in Over ziek zijn (About Being Sick) a collection of essays by multiple authors by HetMoet Publishers. Her real debut will follow in spring 2025: the poetry collection verblijf (stay) with Jurgen Maas Publishers.