First president of independent Algeria: Who is Ahmed Ben Bella?

He served in the French Army in 1937. In World War II, he showed usefulness among the "Free France" troops under the command of De Gaulle. However, when he was wrong in his belief that France would give Algeria independence at the end of the war, he returned to his country.

Ahmed bin Bella; was an Algerian politician, soldier, and socialist revolutionary who served as Algeria's first president from 1963 to 1965. (The town of Marina, on the Moroccan border, 1926 – died April 11, 2012). He completed his education in French schools. He was influenced by the work of Messa-li Hac, one of the leaders of the independence movement in Tlemsen. He served in the French Army in 1937. In World War II, he showed usefulness among the "Free France" troops under the command of De Gaulle. When he was mistaken in his belief that France would give Algeria independence at the end of the war, he returned to Marina.

Ahmed Ben Bella (25 December 1916 – 11 April 2012) was an Algerian politician, soldier and socialist revolutionary who served as the head of government of Algeria from 27 September 1962 to 15 September 1963 and then the first president of Algeria from 15 September 1963 to 19 June 1965.

He took part in the Victory of Democratic Freedoms Movement of the Algerian People's Party (PPA), the organization of Messali Hajj, of which he was a member for many years, and pioneered the establishment of the Organization Secrète (Secret Organization) OS (1947) with the claim of engaging in an armed struggle against France (1947). He became the leader of the OS in 1949. arrested by the French; He was sentenced to 7 years in prison. He escaped from prison in 1952 and went to Egypt. While studying in Egypt, he became friends with Nasser. He took part in the founding of the FLN (National Liberation Front). The FLN started the armed war in 1954. He oversaw the arms supply business to the FLN from 1954-1956.

In 1956, on his way from Morocco to Tunisia, his plane was forced to land in Algeria by French planes, and he was arrested along with three of his friends. While France hoped that the Algerian War of Independence would end with this arrest; it was just the opposite. This arrest made Ben Bella a hero. Ben Bella, the symbol of the Algerian Revolution, was released 6 years later after Algeria gained its independence with the Evian Treaty in 1962. In 1963, he was elected the first president of Algeria in a referendum. Tito became a leading figure in the Non-Aligned movement alongside Nasser and Nkrumah. In the meantime, he largely nationalized the lands and industrial establishments held by foreigners.

He made the FLN a one-party state in 1964. As a result of the pressures on dissidents to consolidate his administration and increase his powers, he was removed from the administration in a coup by Defense Minister Huari Boumedien in 1965, and he was arrested and put in prison in the Sahara. He was freed in 1979 with the amnesty decision of the Algerian President, Şadli bin Cedit. He moved to Paris with his family in 1981 and to Switzerland in 1982. In 1984, he started his political work again by founding an organization called the Algerian Democratic Movement (MDA). Although he returned to his homeland in 1990, he remained away from political life.