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118-441: Military stalemate Post-Egyptian revolution After the death of Nasser Spoilers other political entities French Algeria (19th–20th centuries) Algerian War (1954–1962) 1990s– 2000s 2010s to present The Sand War ( Arabic : حَرْبُ الرِّمَال , romanized :  Ḥarb ar-Rimāl ) was a border conflict between Algeria and Morocco fought from September 25 to October 30, 1963, although

236-515: A Greater Morocco . Upon Algerian independence, the FLN announced it would apply the principle of uti possidetis to pre-existing colonial borders. King Hassan II of Morocco visited Algiers in March 1963 to discuss the undefined borders, but Algeria's President Ahmed Ben Bella believed the matter should be resolved at a later date. Ben Bella's fledgling administration was still attempting to rebuild

354-738: A punitive expedition , the August 1816 bombardment of Algiers . The Dey was forced to sign the Barbary treaties , because the technological advantage of U.S., British, and French forces overwhelmed the Algerians' expertise at naval warfare . Following the conquest under the July monarchy , France referred to the Algerian territories as "French possessions in North Africa". This was disputed by

472-483: A battery of 57-mm recoilless rifles, anti-aircraft artillery with eighteen guns, and eighteen 122mm field guns with the crews to operate them. The unit was made up of 686 men under the command of Efigenio Ameijeiras . Although they were initially described as an advisory contingent to train the Algerian army, Fidel Castro also authorized their deployment in combat actions to safeguard Algeria's territorial integrity. The Cubans offloaded their equipment and transported it to

590-497: A battle with Algerian forces for control over the towns. In the north, Algeria opened a front near Ich, while Morocco launched an offensive towards Tindouf in the south. Cuban troops arrived in Algeria to prepare for an offensive into eastern Morocco, prompting Morocco to prepare for a second offensive towards Tindouf. However, both attacks were suspended, and a ceasefire was officially declared on October 30, 1963. This ceasefire marked

708-593: A ceasefire and both armies returning to their positions prior to the 8 October attack. The United Nations received many pleas to issue a ceasefire appeal, but Secretary-General U Thant wanted to allow regional initiatives to pursue a solution. On October 10, the Arab League called for a withdrawal of troops and reconciliation. On October 29, Hassan and Ben Bella met to negotiate in Bamako , Mali , joined by Emperor Selassie and Mali's President Modibo Keïta . After

826-460: A favorable peace treaty the next year. The treaty of Tafna gained conditional recognition for Abd al Qadir's regime by defining the territory under its control and salvaged his prestige among the tribes just as the shaykhs were about to desert him. To provoke new hostilities, the French deliberately broke the treaty in 1839 by occupying Constantine . Abd al Qadir took up the holy war again, destroyed

944-461: A formal peace treaty was not signed until February 20, 1964. It resulted largely from the Moroccan government's claim to portions of Algeria's Tindouf and Béchar provinces. The Sand War led to heightened tensions between the two countries for several decades. Full-blown confrontation began on September 25, 1963 once Moroccan forces occupied the border towns of Hassi Beida and Tindjoub, beginning

1062-604: A largely uninhabited desert. The French 19th Army Corps ' Oran and Algiers divisions fought the Aït Khabbash, a fraction of the Aït Ounbgui khams of the Aït Atta confederation. The Moroccan viceroy of Tafilalt who was in charge of collecting tribute from the region refrained from interfering in the conflict, and thus the local tribes were left to fend for themselves. Although the Moroccan state did not interfere in

1180-627: A major counteroffensive, Operation Dignidad , aimed at driving the Moroccan forces back across the border and capturing Berguent. From Oran, the Cuban military with armored vehicles on a train of 12 wagons and 42 open platforms travelled 70 km southwest to the city of Sidi Bel Abbes , and then another 10 km along the road to the border town of Ras El Ma , where they settled in Bedo barracks. The Cuban military immediately began preparations for battle. Ameijeiras , Bravo and other senior officers went to

1298-503: A major offensive on Tindouf. It stalled due to unexpectedly stubborn resistance from the town's Algerian and Egyptian garrison. On October 28, 1963, Moroccan forces had planned a second offensive on Tindouf and occupied positions about four kilometres from the settlement. However, Hassan was reluctant to authorise it, fearing that another battle would prompt further military intervention from Algeria's allies. On October 22, hundreds of Cuban troops arrived at Oran . The troops were sent at

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1416-457: A maximum temperature of 48.9 °C (120.0 °F) was registered in Tindouf. Commandant Ferradj Airport is located to the north of Tindouf. The N50 national highway connects Tindouf to the airport as well as other Algerian settlements to the north. 6.1% of the population has a tertiary education, and another 18.8% has completed secondary education. The overall literacy rate is 75.0%, and

1534-520: A military budget of $ 66 million. Morocco's armed forces were smaller, but comparatively well-equipped and frequently took advantage of their superior firepower on the battlefield. They possessed forty T-54 main battle tanks that they had purchased from the Soviet Union, twelve SU-100 tank destroyers, seventeen AMX-13s, and a fleet of gun-armed Panhard EBR armored cars. Morocco also possessed modern strike aircraft, while Algeria did not. In 1963,

1652-572: A mixed system of "total domination and total colonization" whereby French military would wage total war against civilian populations while a colonial administration would provide rule of law and property rights to settlers within French occupied cities. Some governments and scholars have called France's conquest of Algeria a genocide . For example, Ben Kiernan , an Australian expert on Cambodian genocide wrote in Blood and Soil: A World History of Genocide and Extermination from Sparta to Darfur on

1770-581: A mysterious man arrived in Kabiliya. He presented himself as Mohamed ben Abdallah (the name of the Prophet ), but is more commonly known as Sherif Boubaghla . He was probably a former lieutenant in the army of Emir Abdelkader , defeated for the last time by the French in 1847. Boubaghla refused to surrender at that battle, and retreated to Kabylia. From there he began a war against the French armies and their allies, often employing guerrilla tactics. Boubaghla

1888-516: A policy of penetration." —Ben Kiernan, Blood and Soil When France recognized the Armenian genocide , Turkey accused France of having committed genocide against 15% of Algeria's population. On 1 December 1830, King Louis-Philippe named the Duc de Rovigo as head of military staff in Algeria. De Rovigo took control of Bône and initiated colonisation of the land. He was recalled in 1833 due to

2006-561: A position of strength. To this Ameijeiras resolutely declared "We won't stop until we get to Casablanca ". On the evening of October 28, 1963, the commander of the tank battalion, Captain Melquiades Gonzalez, reported to Ameijeiras that the T-34s were ready for the offensive. It was scheduled for the early hours of October 29. However, Ben Bella suspended the attack at 1:00 a.m. in order to proceed with negotiations to end

2124-638: A resourceful warrior. From his capital in Tlemcen , Abd al Qadir set about building a territorial Muslim state based on the communities of the interior but drawing its strength from the tribes and religious brotherhoods. By 1839, he controlled more than two-thirds of Algeria. His government maintained an army and a bureaucracy, collected taxes, supported education, undertook public works, and established agricultural and manufacturing cooperatives to stimulate economic activity. The French in Algiers viewed with concern

2242-614: A solution. The Moroccans were determined to adjust the border, which the Algerians would not allow, resulting in an impasse. Morocco mobilized 30,000 to 40,000 men, while Algeria mobilized a similar amount. The Algerian forces began to retaliate against the Moroccan advances, taking back the posts of Hassi Beida and Tindjoub on October 8 and killing 10 Moroccan soldiers. Morocco claimed that this Algerian attack caused it 20 injuries and 80 disappeared. This prompted further attempts at negotiations, but these proved ineffectual as well. The capture of Hassi Beida involved 1,000 Moroccan soldiers under

2360-512: Is considered of strategic significance as it houses Algerian military bases and an airport with regular flights to Algiers , as well as flights to other domestic destinations. The settlement of Garet Djebilet lies within the municipal territory of Tindouf near the border with Mauritania ; the settlement has an iron mine and a defunct airport, and is approximately 70 kilometres (43 mi) northwest of Âouinet Bel Egrâ . Since 1975, it also contains several Sahrawi refugee camps operated by

2478-485: Is estimated that by 1875, approximately 825,000 indigenous Algerians were killed. Various scholars describe the French conquest as genocide . Algeria was ruled as a colony from 1830 to 1848, and then as multiple departments, an integral part of France , with the implementing of the Constitution of French Second Republic on 4 November 1848, until Algerian independence in 1962. For a period between 1860 and 1870,

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2596-582: Is for their part that civilization is situated." French forces deported and banished entire Algerian tribes. The Moorish families of Tlemcen were exiled to the Orient, and others were emigrated elsewhere. The tribes that were considered too troublesome were banned, and some took refuge in Tunisia, Morocco and Syria or were deported to New Caledonia or Guyana. Also, French forces also engaged in wholesale massacres of entire tribes. All 500 men, women and children of

2714-591: Is the main town, and a commune in Tindouf Province , Algeria , close to the Mauritanian , Western Saharan and Moroccan borders. The commune has a population of around 160,000, but the census and population estimates do not count the Sahrawi refugees, making the population as of the 2008 census 45,966, up from 25,266 in 1998, giving the town an annual population growth rate of 6.3%. The region

2832-475: The Algerian War (1954-1962), the French used deliberate illegal methods against the Algerians, including (as described by Henri Alleg , who himself had been tortured, and historians such as Raphaëlle Branche) beatings, torture by electroshock, waterboarding , burns, and rape. Prisoners were also locked up without food in small cells, buried alive , and thrown from helicopters to their death or into

2950-482: The Algerian War , Morocco backed the National Liberation Front , Algeria's leading nationalist movement, in its guerrilla campaign against the French. However, one of the FLN's primary objectives was to prevent France from splitting the strategic Sahara regions from a future Algerian state. It was, therefore, disinclined to support Morocco's historical claims to Tindouf and Bechar or the concept of

3068-743: The Count of Villèle , an ultra-royalist , President of the council and the monarch's heir, opposed any military action. The Bourbon Restoration government finally decided to blockade Algiers for three years. Meanwhile, the Berber pirates were able to exploit the geography of the coast with ease. Before the failure of the blockade, the Restoration decided on 31 January 1830 to engage a military expedition against Algiers. Admiral Duperré commanded an armada of 600 ships that originated from Toulon , leading it to Algiers. Using Napoleon 's 1808 contingency plan for

3186-569: The French army . One by one, the amir's strongholds fell to the French, and many of his ablest commanders were killed or captured so that by 1843 the Muslim state had collapsed. Abd al Qadir took refuge in 1841 with his ally, the sultan of Morocco , Abd ar Rahman II , and launched raids into Algeria. This alliance led the French Navy to bombard and briefly occupy Essaouira ( Mogador ) under

3304-630: The Greater Morocco ideology of the Istiqlal Party and Allal al-Fassi . Before French colonization of the region in the nineteenth century, part of south and west Algeria were under Moroccan influence and no border was defined. In the Treaty of Lalla Maghnia (March 18, 1845), which set the border between French Algeria and Morocco, it is stipulated that "a territory without water is uninhabitable and its boundaries are superfluous" and

3422-467: The Marquesas Islands or elsewhere. In one word, annihilate everything that will not crawl beneath our feet like dogs. Whatever initial misgivings Louis Philippe's government may have had about occupying Algeria, the geopolitical realities of the situation created by the 1830 intervention argued strongly for reinforcing French presence there. France had reason for concern that Britain , which

3540-462: The Mitidja Plain and envisioned the large-scale production there of cotton . As governor-general (1835–36), he used his office to make private investments in land and encouraged army officers and bureaucrats in his administration to do the same. This development created a vested interest among government officials in greater French involvement in Algeria. Commercial interests with influence in

3658-550: The National Liberation Army to repel the Moroccan invaders. Negotiations for a ceasefire failed again in Marrakesh on October 15–17. On October 20, Moroccan spokesmen reported the capture of an Algerian Army helicopter with 5 Egyptian officers on board. On October 23, Moroccan soldiers tried to attack the town of Hassi-Taghucht post, 90 km south of Tauz, while Algerian units tried to encircle and attack

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3776-602: The Ottoman Empire , then led by Mahmud II but enjoyed relative independence. The Barbary Coast was the stronghold of Berber pirates, who carried out raids against European and American ships. Conflicts between the Barbary States and the newly independent United States of America culminated in the First (1801–05) and Second (1815) Barbary Wars. An Anglo-Dutch force, led by Admiral Lord Exmouth , carried out

3894-586: The Polisario Front , a national liberation movement seeking the self-determination of Western Sahara . The town of Tindouf was built near an isolated Saharan oasis in 1852 by members of the Tajakant tribe, but in 1895 it was sacked and destroyed by the Reguibat , another Sahrawi tribe. The Tajakant tribe were expelled from the region. It remained deserted until French troops arrived in

4012-513: The Prince de Joinville on August 16, 1844. A French force was destroyed at the Battle of Sidi-Brahim in 1845. However, Abd al Qadir was obliged to surrender to the commander of Oran Province, General Louis de Lamoricière , at the end of 1847. Abd al Qadir was promised safe conduct to Egypt or Palestine if his followers laid down their arms and kept the peace. He accepted these conditions, but

4130-613: The Three Glorious Days of July 1830, and his cousin Louis-Philippe , the "citizen king ," was named to preside over a constitutional monarchy . The new government, composed of liberal opponents of the Algiers expedition, was reluctant to pursue the conquest begun by the old regime, but withdrawing from Algeria proved more difficult than conquering it. Alexis de Tocqueville 's views on Algeria were instrumental in its brutal and formal colonization. He advocated for

4248-786: The capture of Algiers in 1516 by the Ottoman admirals, brothers Ours and Hayreddin Barbarossa , Algeria had been a base for conflict and piracy in the Mediterranean basin. In 1681, Louis XIV asked Admiral Abraham Duquesne to fight the Berber pirates . He also ordered a large-scale attack on Algiers between 1682 and 1683 on the pretext of assisting and rescuing enslaved Christians, usually Europeans taken as captives in raids. Again, Jean II d'Estrées bombarded Tripoli and Algiers from 1685 to 1688. An ambassador from Algiers visited

4366-486: The guerrilla ranks of the FLN's National Liberation Army (ALN), was still oriented towards asymmetric warfare , and had few heavy weapons. Its logistics was also complicated by its vast array of largely obsolete weapons from a number of diverse sources, including France, Germany, Czechoslovakia, and the United States. The Algerian army had ordered a large number of AMX-13 light tanks from France in 1962, but, at

4484-533: The locust plagues of 1866 and 1868, as well as by a rigorous winter in 1867–68, which caused a famine followed by an epidemic of cholera . The French began their occupation of Algiers in 1830, starting with a landing in Algiers . As occupation turned into colonization, Kabylia remained the only region independent of the French government. Pressure on the region increased, and the will of her people to resist and defend Kabylia increased as well. In about 1849,

4602-403: The Algerian population. Colonel Lucien de Montagnac stated that the purpose of the pacification was to "destroy everything that will not crawl beneath our feet like dogs" The scorched earth policy, decided by Governor General Thomas Robert Bugeaud , had devastating effects on the socio-economic and food balances of the country: "we fire little gunshot, we burn all douars, all villages, all huts;

4720-684: The Algerian-Berber FFS of Aït Ahmed both suffered as a result of this. In the case of UNFP, its leader, Mehdi Ben Barka , sided with Algeria, and was sentenced to death in absentia as a result. In Algeria, the armed rebellion of the FFS in Kabylie fizzled out, as commanders defected to join the national forces against Morocco. The rivalry between Morocco and Algeria exemplified in the Sand War also influenced Algeria's policy regarding

4838-545: The Algerian-Moroccan border dispute. According to The New York Times , the Algerian artillery barrage at this border town appeared to have erased the cease-fire agreement. The attack was denounced and dramatized by the Moroccan Government. Algerian Foreign Minister Abdelaziz Bouteflika expressed confidence that "wisdom will triumph" and that Algeria and Morocco would end renewed border fighting near

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4956-800: The Court in Versailles, and a treaty was signed in 1690 that provided peace throughout the 18th century. During the Directory regime of the First French Republic (1795–99), the Bacri and the Busnach, Jewish merchants of Algiers, provided large quantities of grain for Napoleon's soldiers who participated in the Italian campaign of 1796. But Bonaparte refused to pay the bill, claiming it

5074-537: The El Oufia tribe were killed in one night, while all 500 to 700 members of the Ouled Rhia tribe were killed by suffocation in a cave. The Siege of Laghouat is referred by Algerians as the year of the "Khalya ," Arabic for emptiness, which is commonly known to the inhabitants of Laghouat as the year that the city was emptied of its population. It is also commonly known as the year of Hessian sacks, referring to

5192-555: The Foreign Ministers of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU). The meeting would be held to set up a commission to determine who was responsible for starting the war and to examine the frontier question and suggest methods for bringing about a lasting settlement of the conflict. The ceasefire was almost jeopardized on November 1, when Algerian troops assaulted a village near Figuig and positioned themselves against

5310-592: The French Christian troops and to belligerent calls for jihad from the marabouts . Despite the diplomatic rupture between Morocco and the Two Sicilies in 1830, and the naval warfare engaged against the Austrian Empire as well as with Spain , then headed by Ferdinand VII , Sultan Abderrahmane lent his support to the Algerian insurgency of Abd El-Kader . The latter fought for years against

5428-400: The French and their makhzen allies at Oran in 1832. In the same year, jihad was declared and to lead it tribal elders chose Muhyi ad Din's son, twenty-five-year-old Abd al Qadir . Abd al Qadir, who was recognized as Amir al-Muminin (commander of the faithful), quickly gained the support of tribes throughout Algeria. A devout and austere marabout, he was also a cunning political leader and

5546-452: The French army has set foot. Who wants the end wants the means, whatever may say our philanthropists. I personally warn all good soldiers whom I have the honour to lead that if they happen to bring me a living Arab, they will receive a beating with the flat of the saber.... This is how, my dear friend, we must make war against Arabs: kill all men over the age of fifteen, take all their women and children, load them onto naval vessels, send them to

5664-548: The French captured Constantine under Sylvain Charles Valée the following year, on 13 October 1837. Historians generally set the indigenous population of Algeria at 3 million in 1830. Although the Algerian population decreased at some point under French rule, most certainly between 1866 and 1872, the French military was not fully responsible for the extent of this decrease, as some of these deaths could be explained by

5782-457: The French conquest of Algeria : By 1875, the French conquest was complete. The war had killed approximately 825,000 indigenous Algerians since 1830. A long shadow of genocidal hatred persisted, provoking a French author to protest in 1882 that in Algeria, "we hear it repeated every day that we must expel the native and, if necessary, destroy him." As a French statistical journal urged five years later, "the system of extermination must give way to

5900-476: The French during the Algerian War during the 1950s against Algerians include deliberate bombing and killing of unarmed civilians, rape, torture , executions through " death flights " or burial alive , thefts and pillaging. Up to 2 million Algerian civilians were also deported in internment camps. During the Pacification of Algeria (1835-1903) French forces engaged in a scorched earth policy against

6018-469: The French general Jacques Louis César Randon was caught but managed to escape later. On 26 December 1854, Boubaghla was killed; some sources claim it was due to treason of some of his allies. The resistance was left without a charismatic leader and a commander able to guide it efficiently. For this reason, during the first months of 1855, on a sanctuary built on top of the Azru Nethor peak, not far from

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6136-563: The French settlements on the Mitidja Plain, and at one point advanced to the outskirts of Algiers itself. He struck where the French were weakest and retreated when they advanced against him in greater strength. The government moved from camp to camp with the amir and his army. Gradually, however, superior French resources and manpower and the defection of tribal chieftains took their toll. Reinforcements poured into Algeria after 1840 until Bugeaud had at his disposal 108,000 men, one-third of

6254-479: The French. Directing an army of 12,000 men, Abd El-Kader first organized the blockade of Oran. Algerian refugees were welcomed by the Moroccan population, while the Sultan recommended that the authorities of Tetuan assist them, by providing jobs in the administration or the military forces. The inhabitants of Tlemcen , near the Moroccan border, asked that they be placed under the Sultan's authority in order to escape

6372-532: The Moroccan town of Figuig. A Malian officer arrived on November 4 and enforced the Bamako Accord, ending the hostilities. The OAU mediated a formal peace treaty on February 20, 1964. The treaty was signed in Mali following a number of preliminary discussions between Hassan and Ben Bella. Terms of this agreement included a reaffirmation of the previously established borders in Algeria's favor and restoration of

6490-611: The Ottoman Empire, which had not given up its claim. In 1839 Marshal General Jean-de-Dieu Soult , Duke of Dalmatia, first named these territories as "Algeria". The invasion of Algeria against the Regency of Algiers (Ottoman Algeria) was initiated in the last days of the Bourbon Restoration by Charles X , as an attempt to increase his popularity amongst the French people. He particularly hoped to appeal to

6608-457: The advantage on 19 June during the battle of Staouéli , and entered Algiers on 5 July after a three-week campaign. The dey agreed to surrender in exchange for his freedom and the offer to retain possession of his personal wealth. Five days later, he exiled himself with his family, departing on a French ship for the Italian peninsula . 2,500 janissaries also quit the Algerian territories, heading for Asia, on 11 July. The French army then recruited

6726-548: The annexation of the Tuat region, several Moroccan tribes independently sent volunteers to fight against the French. The conflict ended with the annexation of the Touat-Gourara-Tidikelt complex by France in 1901. In 1903, France also began expanding westwards towards Bechar and Tindouf . They defeated the local tribesmen at the Battle of Taghit and the Battle of El-Moungar , although they didn't directly annex

6844-532: The area in 1934 and attached the region to French Algerian territory. Since Algerian independence in 1962, the town has been deliberately built up, partly because of its importance as a last outpost before the Moroccan, Sahrawi and Mauritanian borders. In 1963, the area was the scene of fighting between Algerian and Moroccan forces laying claim to western Algeria, during the Sand War . The region has since been heavily militarized, increasing its relevance. Since

6962-470: The area was virtually uninhabited. The discovery of large deposits of oil and minerals (iron, manganese) in the region led France to define more precisely the territories, and in 1952 the French decided to integrate Tindouf and Colomb-Bechar to the French departments of Algeria. In 1956 France relinquished its protectorate in Morocco, which immediately demanded the return of the disputed departments, especially Tindouf. The French government refused. During

7080-416: The battle, there were 1,000 Moroccan troops armed with bazookas, recoilless cannons, heavy machine guns and tanks. It is asserted that 3,000 Algerian troops took part in the battle. Little use of airpower has been reported, except for an Algerian plane that bombarded Oued Zeknou. This battle cut the route from Bechar to Tindouf and the passage of caravans through the area. Algeria was strongly disadvantaged as

7198-404: The border is delineated over only 165 km. Beyond that there is only one border area, without limit, punctuated by tribal territories attached to Morocco or Algeria. In the 1890s, the French administration and military called for the annexation of the Tuat region. Tuat owed religious and tributary allegiance to the Sultans of Morocco, although it was separated from both Algeria and Morocco by

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7316-405: The city of Colomb-Bechar , where the headquarters of the Algerian Minister of Defense Houari Boumédiène was located. By that time, the Algerian military had already developed a strategy to confront the Moroccans. At a command meeting in Colomb-Béchar, Defense Minister Boumédiène set the task of capturing as many of the border areas of Morocco as possible, which would allow Algeria to negotiate from

7434-428: The coast in the Gulf of Bougie, shelled Kherrata. Vigilantes lynched prisoners taken from local jails or randomly shot Muslims not wearing white arm bands (as instructed by the army) out of hand. It is certain that the great majority of the Muslim victims had not been implicated in the original outbreak. The dead bodies in Guelma were buried in mass graves, but they were later dug up and burned in Héliopolis . During

7552-455: The command of colonel Habibi who started from bases near Ouarzazate . Moroccan infantry advanced along camel roads until 4:00 a.m. The battle involved mortars and heavy machine guns. Tinjoub held out for about 2 hours until 7:30 a.m, while Hassi Beida held out for another hour. The larger Moroccan army retook the two posts during the week of October 14, killing at least 10 Algerians in the process. The Algerians retreated to Tinfouchy . During

7670-434: The conflict in Western Sahara , with Algeria backing an independence -minded Sahrawi guerrilla organization, the Polisario Front , partly to curb Moroccan expansionism in the wake of the attempt to annex Tindouf. French Algeria The French conquest of Algeria began in 1830 with the invasion of Algiers which toppled the Regency of Algiers , though Algeria was not fully conquered and pacified until 1903. It

7788-429: The conflict. Ben Bella claimed that the conflict had been deliberately provoked by "feudal" Morocco with the encouragement of the United States in order to crush Algeria's socialist revolution. On October 18, the Algerians opened a new front along the border in the north, close to the more highly developed Mediterranean region of northern Algeria and in a portion of the border not contested by Morocco. This represented

7906-495: The country after the enormous damage caused by the Algerian War and was already pre-occupied with an insurgency by the FFS led by Hocine Aït Ahmed opposed to Ben Bella's autocratic rule. Algerian authorities suspected that Morocco was inciting the revolt, while Hassan was anxious about his own opposition's reverence for Algeria, escalating tensions between the nations. These factors prompted Hassan to begin moving troops towards Tindouf. The Algerian military , recently formed from

8024-406: The dey and claimed they could not pay it until France paid its debts to them. The dey had unsuccessfully negotiated with Pierre Deval , the French consul, to rectify this situation, and he suspected Deval of collaborating with the merchants against him, especially when the French government made no provisions in 1820 to pay the merchants. Deval's nephew Alexandre, the consul in Bône , further angered

8142-400: The dey by fortifying French storehouses in Bône and La Calle , contrary to the terms of prior agreements. After a contentious meeting in which Deval refused to provide satisfactory answers on 29 April 1827, the dey struck Deval with his fly whisk . Charles X used this slight against his diplomatic representative to first demand an apology from the dey, and then to initiate a blockade against

8260-405: The enemy flees across taking his flock." According to Olivier Le Cour Grandmaison , the colonization of Algeria led to the extermination of a third of the population from multiple causes (massacres, deportations, famines or epidemics) that were all interrelated. Returning from an investigation trip to Algeria, Tocqueville wrote that "we make war much more barbaric than the Arabs themselves [...] it

8378-403: The escalation and internationalization of the war, particularly wanting to avoid Soviet intervention, and therefore advocated for the peaceful resolution of the conflict. The United States opposed Hassan's interpretation of inter-Arab rivalry's effect on North Africa. Despite Hassan's request, France, Spain and the United States refused to provide him with military assistance in an effort to isolate

8496-824: The fact that the exact number is a sensitive issue due to the Sahrawi refugees, who are excluded from the estimate. Tindouf has a hot desert climate ( Köppen climate classification BWh ), with extremely hot summers and very warm winters. There is very little rain for most of the year, generally concentrated in February and —associated with the West African Monsoon — by September–October. The region can be hit by rare events of heavy rain, such as in February 2006 or October 2015. Summer daytime temperatures commonly approach 45 °C (113 °F) with blazing sunshine, while winter nighttime temperatures can sometimes drop to 5 °C (41 °F) or less. On 31 July 2023,

8614-621: The first zouaves (a title given to certain light infantry regiments) in October, followed by the spahis regiments, while France expropriated all the land properties belonging to the Turkish settlers , known as Beliks . In the western region of Oran , Sultan Abderrahmane of Morocco , the Commander of the Faithful , could not remain indifferent to the massacres committed by

8732-566: The first intensification of the hostilities and enlarged the war to the north. The Algerians attacked the town of Ich on October 18, a border oasis 80 miles northeast of Figuig , forcing the Moroccans to withdraw. The Moroccan casualties were a few dozen missing. On the next day, the Algerians bombarded the Tindrara region in Oujda province. On October 13, 1963, Moroccan ground units launched

8850-412: The first multinational peacekeeping mission conducted by the Organisation of African Unity . A formal peace treaty was eventually signed on February 20, 1964. Three factors contributed to the outbreak of this conflict: the absence of a precise delineation of the border between Algeria and Morocco, the discovery of important mineral resources in the disputed area, and the Moroccan irredentism fueled by

8968-442: The foundations for a lasting and often intensely hostile rivalry between Morocco and Algeria, exacerbated by the differences in political outlook between the conservative Moroccan monarchy and the revolutionary , Arab socialist Algerian military government. In January 1969, Algerian President Houari Boumediene made a state visit to Morocco and signed a treaty of friendship with Hassan's government at Ifrane . The following year

9086-432: The four leaders met alone on October 30, a truce was declared. The accord mandated a ceasefire for November 2, and announced that a commission consisting of Moroccan, Algerian, Ethiopian, and Malian officers would decide the boundaries of a demilitarized zone . It was also determined that an Ethiopian and Malian team would observe the neutrality of the demilitarized zone. Finally, the accord suggested an immediate gathering of

9204-536: The front was within the range of the Saharan military district of Morocco and accessible to logistical support, while the fighting took place 750 miles away from the capital Algiers , and Algerian troops were committed to suppressing the Socialist Forces Front rebellion in the region of Kabylia, which Algeria eventually succeeded in suppressing. On October 15, Ben Bella called for a remobilization of

9322-515: The government also began to recognize the prospects for profitable land speculation in expanding the French zone of occupation. They created large agricultural tracts, built factories and businesses, and hired local labor. Among others testimonies, Lieutenant-colonel Lucien de Montagnac wrote on 15 March 1843, in a letter to a friend: All populations who do not accept our conditions must be despoiled. Everything must be seized, devastated, without age or sex distinction: grass must not grow any more where

9440-404: The invaders. Abderrahmane named his nephew Prince Moulay Ali Caliph of Tlemcen, charged with the protection of the city. In retaliation France executed two Moroccans: Mohamed Beliano and Benkirane, as spies, while their goods were seized by the military governor of Oran, Pierre François Xavier Boyer . Hardly had the news of the capture of Algiers reached Paris than Charles X was deposed during

9558-499: The invasion of Algeria, General de Bourmont then landed 27 kilometres (17 mi) west of Algiers, at Sidi Ferruch on 14 June 1830, with 34,000 soldiers. In response to the French, the Algerian dey ordered an opposition consisting of 7,000 janissaries , 19,000 troops from the beys of Constantine and Oran , and about 17,000 Kabyles . The French established a strong beachhead and pushed toward Algiers, thanks in part to superior artillery and better organization. The French troops took

9676-468: The majority of the territory throughout its history. Gradually, dissatisfaction among the Muslim population, due to their lack of political and economic freedom, fueled calls for greater political autonomy , and eventually independence from France. The Sétif and Guelma massacre , in 1945, marked a point of no return in Franco-Algerian relations and led to the outbreak of the Algerian War which

9794-527: The many veterans of the Napoleonic Wars who lived in Paris. His intention was to bolster patriotic sentiment, and distract attention from ineptly handled domestic policies by "skirmishing against the dey." In the 1790s, France had contracted to purchase wheat for the French army from two merchants in Algiers, Messrs. Bacri and Boushnak, and was in arrears paying them. Bacri and Boushnak owed money to

9912-436: The marchers and the local French gendarmerie, when the latter tried to seize banners attacking colonial rule. After five days, the French colonial military and police suppressed the rebellion, and then carried out a series of reprisals against Muslim civilians. The army carried out summary executions of Muslim rural communities. Less accessible villages were bombed by French aircraft, and cruiser Duguay-Trouin , standing off

10030-539: The mid-70s, the Tindouf region has served as the base for the Polisario Front , a Sahrawi nationalist organization fighting for Western Sahara 's independence. The Polisario Front is headquartered in self-administered refugee camps south of the city, which filled up as Moroccan and Mauritanian forces conquered Western Sahara in 1975. During the war years of 1975–1990, Polisario forces struck in Western Sahara, Mauritania (until 1979) and southern Morocco (including

10148-568: The minister of war — who years earlier as general in Algeria had been badly defeated by Abd al Qadir — had him consigned in France in the Château d'Amboise . According to Ben Kiernan , colonization and genocidal massacres proceeded in tandem. Within the first three decades (1830–1860) of French conquest, between 500,000 and 1,000,000 Algerians, out of a total of 3 million, were killed due to war, massacres, disease and famine. Atrocities committed by

10266-521: The overtly violent nature of the repression. Wishing to avoid a conflict with Morocco, Louis-Philippe sent an extraordinary mission to the sultan, mixed with displays of military might, sending war ships to the Bay of Tangier . An ambassador was sent to Sultan Moulay Abderrahmane in February 1832, headed by the Count Charles-Edgar de Mornay and including the painter Eugène Delacroix . However

10384-490: The population offered to take up arms against the Moroccan invaders. Morocco's invasion proved to be a diplomatic blunder, as the other Arab and African states refused to recognize its border claims. Egypt ( United Arab Republic ) even began sending troops and defense hardware in late October to bolster the Algerian military, sending about 1,000 troops to Algeria. Morocco's Western allies provided assistance, after Morocco's formal requests for military aid. The United States feared

10502-469: The port of Algiers. France demanded that the dey send an ambassador to France to resolve the incident. When the dey responded with cannon fire directed toward one of the blockading ships, the French determined that more forceful action was required. Pierre Deval and other French residents of Algiers left for France, while the Minister of War , Clermont-Tonnerre , proposed a military expedition. However,

10620-407: The region into French Algeria. The borders around this region were loosely defined. After Morocco became a French protectorate in 1912, the French administration set borders between the two territories, but these tracks were often misidentified (Varnier line in 1912, Trinquet line in 1938), and varied from one map to another, since for the French administration these were not international borders and

10738-399: The region of Tata ), using the Tindouf region as their rear base area with Algerian protection and support. Since 1990 the area has been quiet, although the refugee community remains in Algeria, pending a UN-sponsored peace process and a referendum on independence. (See Minurso .) Tindouf has a population of 47,965 (2010 estimates), though this figure is of questionable authenticity, given

10856-568: The request of Ben Bella, though he would later deny this in 1997. Just years after the victory of their own revolution, many Cubans identified with the Algerians and were eager to support them. They also suspected that Washington was hoping the war would precipitate Ben Bella's downfall, which Castro was determined to prevent. For these reasons, the Cuban government formed the Grupo Especial de Instrucción to be sent to Algeria. Its forces included twenty-two T-34 tanks, eighteen 120-mm mortars,

10974-718: The sea with concrete on their feet. Claude Bourdet had denounced these acts on 6 December 1951, in the magazine L'Observateur , rhetorically asking, "Is there a Gestapo in Algeria? ." D. Huf, in his seminal work on the subject, argued that the use of torture was one of the major factors in developing French opposition to the war. Huf argued, "Such tactics sat uncomfortably with France's revolutionary history, and brought unbearable comparisons with Nazi Germany . The French national psyche would not tolerate any parallels between their experiences of occupation and their colonial mastery of Algeria." General Paul Aussaresses admitted in 2000 that systematic torture techniques were used during

11092-535: The size of the Moroccan army was 34,843 troops and it had a military budget of $ 94 million. Weeks of skirmishes along the border eventually escalated into a full-blown confrontation on September 25, 1963, with intense fighting around the oasis towns of Tindouf and Figuig . The Royal Moroccan Army soon crossed into Algeria in force and succeeded in taking the two border posts of Hassi Beida and Tindjoub. On October 5, representatives from Morocco and Algeria convened at Oujda to negotiate, but they were unable to deliver

11210-521: The southwestern front by rail. The troops provided training to the Algerians, and their medical team offered the population free healthcare. While Castro had hoped to keep Cuba's intervention covert, and a number of the Cuban personnel wore Algerian uniforms, they were observed by French military and diplomatic staff in Oran and word of their presence soon leaked to the Western press. Algeria and Cuba planned

11328-573: The status quo. The demilitarized zone was maintained in the meantime, monitored by the OAU's first multinational peacekeeping force. French sources reported Algerian casualties to be 60 dead and 250 wounded, with later works giving a number of 300 Algerian dead. Morocco officially reported to have suffered 39 dead. Moroccan losses were probably lower than the Algerians' but are unconfirmed, with later sources reporting 200 Moroccan dead. About 57 Moroccans and 379 Algerians were taken prisoner . The Sand War laid

11446-466: The success of a Muslim government and the rapid growth of a viable territorial state that barred the extension of European settlement. Abd al Qadir fought running battles across Algeria with French forces, which included units of the Foreign Legion, organized in 1831 for Algerian service. Although his forces were defeated by the French under General Thomas Bugeaud in 1836, Abd al Qadir negotiated

11564-426: The sultan refused French demands that he evacuate Tlemcen . In 1834, France annexed as a colony the occupied areas of Algeria, which had an estimated Muslim population of about two million. Colonial administration in the occupied areas — the so-called régime du sabre (government of the sword) — was placed under a governor-general , a high-ranking army officer invested with civil and military jurisdiction, who

11682-477: The then-French emperor Napoleon III transformed Algeria into a client state , expanding freedoms, and limiting colonisation, a move deeply unpopular by the French colonists. As a recognized jurisdiction of France, Algeria became a destination for hundreds of thousands of European immigrants. They were first known as colons , and later as pieds-noirs , a term applied primarily to ethnic Europeans born in Algeria. The indigenous Muslim population comprised

11800-419: The time of the fighting, only twelve were in service. Ironically, at least four AMX-13s had also been donated by Morocco a year earlier. The Soviet Union supplied Algeria with ten T-34 tanks, but these were equipped for clearing minefields and were delivered without turrets or armament. The Algerian army also lacked trucks, aircraft, and jeeps. In 1963, the size of the Algerian army was 48,000 troops and it had

11918-527: The town of Usada, 10 km from Zedgu, however, both of these attacks were repulsed. The Algerian army launched another counterattack against Hassi Beida with heavy material, however it withdrew after being repulsed, leaving almost a hundred dead on the ground. Despite internal discontent with the Algerian government, most of the country supported the war effort, which Algerians generally perceived as an act of Moroccan aggression. Even in regions where Ben Bella's regime remained deeply unpopular, such as Kabylia ,

12036-506: The town's airport. Surrounded by Algerians, the town was assaulted with Algerian infantry and artillery. The Moroccans claimed to have beaten them off. The town has been under heavy shell fire and the number of dead civilians was reported to be at least 60. Fighting continued for two days after a cease-fire was to have taken effect, and Morocco reportedly pressed for the United Nations Security Council to consider

12154-416: The traditional submission as a slave to a husband. In fact, at that time Boubaghla left his first wife (Fatima Bent Sidi Aissa) and sent back to her owner a slave he had as a concubine (Halima Bent Messaoud). But on her side, Lalla Fadhma wasn't free: even if she was recognized as tamnafeqt ("woman who left her husband to get back to his family ," a Kabylia institution), the matrimonial tie with her husband

12272-480: The two leaders set up a commission to demarcate the border and examine prospects for joint efforts to mine iron ore in the disputed region. Morocco finally abandoned all claims to Algerian territory in 1972 with the Accord of Ifrane, though Morocco refused to ratify the agreement until 1989. The governments of both Morocco and Algeria used the war to describe opposition movements as unpatriotic. The Moroccan UNFP and

12390-529: The use of torture during the war. In June 2000, Bigeard declared that he was based in Sidi Ferruch , a torture center where Algerians were murdered. Bigeard qualified Louisette Ighilahriz 's revelations, published in the Le Monde newspaper on June 20, 2000, as "lies." An ALN activist, Louisette Ighilahriz had been tortured by General Massu. However, since General Massu's revelations, Bigeard has admitted

12508-410: The use of torture, although he denies having personally used it, and has declared, "You are striking the heart of an 84-year-old man." Bigeard also recognized that Larbi Ben M'Hidi was assassinated and that his death was disguised as a suicide. In 2018 France officially admitted that torture was systematic and routine. Tindouf Tindouf ( Arabic : تندوف , romanized :  Tindūf )

12626-469: The village where Fadhma was born, there was a great council among combatants and important figures of the tribes in Kabylie. They decided to grant Lalla Fadhma, assisted by her brothers, the command of combat. The French faced other opposition as well in the area. The superior of a religious brotherhood, Muhyi ad Din , who had spent time in Ottoman jails for opposing the bey's rule, launched attacks against

12744-419: The war against the French. With her inspiring speeches, she convinced many men to fight as imseblen (volunteers ready to die as martyrs) and she herself, together with other women, participated in combat by providing cooking, medicines, and comfort to the fighting forces. Traditional sources tell that a strong bond was formed between Lalla Fadhma and Boubaghla. She saw this as a wedding of peers, rather than

12862-446: The war and justified it. He also recognized the assassination of lawyer Ali Boumendjel and the head of the FLN in Algiers, Larbi Ben M'Hidi , which had been disguised as suicides. Bigeard , who called FLN activists "savages ," claimed torture was a "necessary evil ." To the contrary, General Jacques Massu denounced it, following Aussaresses's revelations and, before his death, pronounced himself in favor of an official condemnation of

12980-461: The war peacefully. Multiple actors, including the Arab League , Tunisia 's Habib Bourguiba , Libya 's King Idris , and Ethiopia 's Emperor Haile Selassie , sought to moderate negotiations. President of Egypt, Gamal Abdel Nasser , sent a letter to Hassan II urging him to stop the fighting. In his message, he condemned the Moroccan attack and justified his support for Algeria, and suggested

13098-641: The way the captured surviving men and boys were put alive in the hessian sacks and thrown into dug-up trenches. From 8 May to June 26, 1945, the French carried out the Sétif and Guelma massacre , in which between 6,000 and 80,000 Algerian Muslims were killed. Its initial outbreak occurred during a parade of about 5,000 people of the Muslim Algerian population of Sétif to celebrate the surrender of Nazi Germany in World War II; it ended in clashes between

13216-471: Was a relentless fighter, and very eloquent in Arabic. He was very religious, and some legends tell of his thaumaturgic skills. Boubaghla went often to Soumer to talk with high-ranking members of the religious community, and Lalla Fadhma was soon attracted by his strong personality. At the same time, the relentless combatant was attracted by a woman so resolutely willing to contribute, by any means possible, to

13334-635: Was characterised by the use guerrilla warfare by National Liberation Front , and crimes against humanity by the French. The war ended in 1962, with Algeria gaining independence following the Évian Accords in March 1962 and a self-determination referendum in July 1962. During its last years as part of France, Algeria was a founding member of the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community . Since

13452-585: Was excessive. In 1820, Louis XVIII paid back half of the Directory's debts. The Dey , who had loaned the Bacri 250,000 francs , requested the rest of the money from France. French Algeria (19th–20th centuries) Algerian War (1954–1962) 1990s– 2000s 2010s to present The Dey of Algiers was weak politically, economically, and militarily. Algeria was then part of the Barbary States , along with today's Tunisia; these depended on

13570-546: Was led by Ahmad ibn Muhammad , bey of Constantine . He initiated a radical overhaul of the Ottoman administration in his beylik by replacing Turkish officials with local leaders, making Arabic the official language, and attempting to reform finances according to the precepts of Islam . After the French failed in several attempts to gain some of the bey 's territories through negotiation, an ill-fated invasion force, led by Bertrand Clauzel , had to retreat from Constantine in 1836 in humiliation and defeat. However,

13688-415: Was pledged to maintain the territorial integrity of the Ottoman Empire, would move to fill the vacuum left by a French withdrawal. The French devised elaborate plans for settling the hinterland left by Ottoman provincial authorities in 1830, but their efforts at state-building were unsuccessful on account of lengthy armed resistance. The most successful local opposition immediately after the fall of Algiers

13806-412: Was responsible to the minister of war. Marshal Bugeaud , who became the first governor-general, headed the conquest. Soon after the conquest of Algiers, the soldier-politician Bertrand Clauzel and others formed a company to acquire agricultural land and, despite official discouragement, to subsidize its settlement by European farmers, triggering a land rush . Clauzel recognized the farming potential of

13924-414: Was still in place, and only her husband's will could free her. However he did not agree to this, even when offered large bribes. The love between Fadhma and Bou remained platonic, but there were public expressions of this feeling between the two. Fadhma was personally present at many fights in which Boubaghla was involved, particularly the battle of Tachekkirt won by Boubaghla forces (18–19 July 1854), where

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