Aba's work gained greater critical recognition in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In 1979 he was presented with the Prix de l'Afrique méditerranéenne for his poetry, and in 1985 he was awarded the Fondation de France's "Prix Charles Oulmont" for his contribution to literature.[1][8] His 1981 play Tell el Zaatar... won the Prix Palestine-Mahmoud Hamchari.[4]