Djamila Bouhired
Encyclopedia
Djamila Bouhired is an Algeria
n revolutionary.
Bouhired is a nationalist who opposed French colonial rule of Algeria. Djamila Bouhired was raised in a middle-class family, she went to a French
school and joined the Algeria
n National Liberation Front
(FLN) while a student activist. Later, she worked as a liaison officer
and personal assistant of FLN commander Yacef Saadi in Algiers
. She was considered valuable to the FLN because she looked European and could easily infiltrate places where French soldiers hung out.
In April 1957, during the hunt for Yacef, she was wounded in a shootout between Yacef and French troops and taken by French troops
. When a French patrol stopped them, Yacef, who was disguised as a woman, drew a sub-machine gun and shot her in the back, so that she couldn't reveal information about him, but he only wounded her. She was tortured with electricity and then sentenced to death. Her execution was stopped after a media campaign by her French lawyer, Jacques Vergès
. She was released in 1962 and was regarded as a hero in Algeria.
Bouhired and Vergès eventually married, and worked together on Révolution africaine, an Algerian magazine written in French focusing on African nationalist revolutions. She was one of the trio of FLN female bombers depicted in the 1966 film The Battle of Algiers
. She was also depicted in the film Jamila the Algerian (1958) by Egypt
ian director Youssef Chahine
.
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n revolutionary.
Bouhired is a nationalist who opposed French colonial rule of Algeria. Djamila Bouhired was raised in a middle-class family, she went to a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
school and joined the Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n National Liberation Front
National Liberation Front (Algeria)
The National Liberation Front is a socialist political party in Algeria. It was set up on November 1, 1954 as a merger of other smaller groups, to obtain independence for Algeria from France.- Anticolonial struggle :...
(FLN) while a student activist. Later, she worked as a liaison officer
Liaison officer
A liaison officer or LNO is a person that liaises between two organizations to communicate and coordinate their activities. Generally, they are used to achieve the best utilization of resources or employment of services of one organization by another. In the military, liaison officers may...
and personal assistant of FLN commander Yacef Saadi in Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
. She was considered valuable to the FLN because she looked European and could easily infiltrate places where French soldiers hung out.
In April 1957, during the hunt for Yacef, she was wounded in a shootout between Yacef and French troops and taken by French troops
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
. When a French patrol stopped them, Yacef, who was disguised as a woman, drew a sub-machine gun and shot her in the back, so that she couldn't reveal information about him, but he only wounded her. She was tortured with electricity and then sentenced to death. Her execution was stopped after a media campaign by her French lawyer, Jacques Vergès
Jacques Vergès
Jacques Vergès, born 5 March 1925 in Ubon Ratchathani, Siam , is a French-Vietnamese lawyer who has earned fame continually since the 1950s, first as an anticolonialist communist figure and then for defending a long string of well-known clients from anticolonialist Algerian militant Djamila...
. She was released in 1962 and was regarded as a hero in Algeria.
Bouhired and Vergès eventually married, and worked together on Révolution africaine, an Algerian magazine written in French focusing on African nationalist revolutions. She was one of the trio of FLN female bombers depicted in the 1966 film The Battle of Algiers
The Battle of Algiers (film)
The Battle of Algiers is a 1966 war film based on occurrences during the Algerian War against French colonial occupation in North Africa, the most prominent being the titular Battle of Algiers. It was directed by Gillo Pontecorvo...
. She was also depicted in the film Jamila the Algerian (1958) by Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian director Youssef Chahine
Youssef Chahine
Youssef Chahine was an Egyptian film director active in the Egyptian film industry since 1950. He was credited with launching the career of actor Omar Sharif...
.