- Saadi Yacef
Infobox Military Person
name=Saadi Yacef
lived=20 January ,1928 –
placeofbirth=Algiers ,Algeria
placeofdeath=
caption=Arrest of by French forces during the (24 September 1957).
allegiance=
serviceyears= 1945–1962
rank= FLN military chief of the Zone Autonome d'Alger
battles=Battle of Algiers
laterwork=Author ,Film Producer ,Actor ,Baker ,Politician Saadi Yacef (born
January 20 ,1928 ) was one of the leaders ofAlgeria 's National Liberation Front during his country's war of independence. He is currently a Senator inAlgeria 'sPeople's National Assembly .Yacef was born in
Algiers . He started his working life as an apprentice baker. In 1945 he joined the Parti du Peuple Algerien, a nationalist party which the French authorities soon outlawed, after which it was reconstituted as the Mouvement pour le Triomphe des Libertes Democratiques (MTLD). From 1947 to 1949 Yacef served in the MTLD's paramilitary wing, the Organisation Secrete. After the OS was broken up Yacef moved to France and lived there until 1952, when he returned toAlgeria to work again as a baker.Yacef joined the FLN at the start of the Algerian War in 1954. By May 1956 he was the FLN's military chief of the Zone Autonome d'Alger (Autonomous Zone of Algiers), making him one of the leaders on the Algerian side in the Battle of Algiers. He was captured by French troops on September 24, 1957 and eventually sentenced to death. General
Paul Aussaresses claims that while in custody, he provided the French army with the location ofAli la Pointe , another leading FLN commander Aussaresses, Paul. "The Battle of the Casbah: Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism in Algeria 1955-1957". New York, Enigma Books, 2005. p. 162. ] . He was ultimately pardoned by the French government afterCharles de Gaulle 's 1958 return to power.While in prison, Yacef wrote his memoir of the battle, which was published in 1962 as "Souvenirs de la Bataille d'Alger". After the Algerian War, Yacef helped produce
Gillo Pontecorvo 's film "The Battle of Algiers" (1966), based on "Souvenirs de la Bataille d'Alger". Yacef himself played a character modeled on his own experiences in the battle.References
See also
*
Zohra Drif
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