Emmanuel Macron acknowledged on Friday that the leader of the National Liberation Front (FLN) Larbi Ben M’hidi was “assassinated by French soldiers”, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the insurrection of November 1, 1954, which opened the Algerian war.
Larbi Ben M’hidi, who died in 1957, was “assassinated by French soldiers”, Emmanuel Macron acknowledged on Friday, November 1 , on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the November 1, 1954 uprising which opened the Algerian war .
The French president had a word for the leader of the Algerian National Liberation Front, presenting him as a “national hero” for his country. In a statement from the Élysée, he indicated that the man who had been one of the six leaders of the November 1, 1954 insurrection had been assassinated by French soldiers “under the command of General Aussaresses.”
Often presented by his compatriots as the “Algerian Jean Moulin”, the leader of the FLN was assassinated in 1957 by General Paul Aussaresses, who confessed to it in the early 2000s, denying the official version which had disguised his death as a suicide attempt.
Emmanuel Macron acknowledges this execution at a time of high tensions between France and Algeria, particularly after an important state visit to Morocco.
“Thinking about future generations”
“The recognition of this assassination attests that the work of historical truth, which the President of the Republic initiated with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune , will continue,” the press release underlines, specifying that Emmanuel Macron’s objective is “to achieve the creation of a peaceful and shared memory.”
“It is also with future generations in mind that the Head of State makes it his duty, again and again, to seek ways of reconciling memories between the two countries,” the Élysée Palace specifies.
Born in 1923 near Aïn M’lila, in the Aurès (northeast), Larbi Ben M’hidi was the head of the “Autonomous Zone of Algiers since 1956”, during “the battle of Algiers”, recalls the press release, adding that “as the President of the Republic has already recognized for Maurice Audin and Ali Boumendjel , this repression was accompanied by the establishment of a system outside the society of Human and Citizen Rights, made possible by the vote of ‘special powers’ in Parliament”.
A measure which at the time gave “carte blanche to the government to restore order in Algeria and allowed the adoption of a decree authorizing the delegation of police powers to the army, declined by prefectural decree, first in Algiers, then throughout Algeria, in 1957”, he explains.
A man of conviction, Ben M’Hidi’s courage and brilliant mind have commanded respect even from his opponents. In the press release, the French presidency pays tribute to him, assuring that “the French military who knew him by reputation were impressed by his charisma and courage.”
During his arrest on February 23, Ben M’hidi was paraded before the press, his hands bound by handcuffs, but smiling and serene, facing the French paratroopers.
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