The F.L.N. executed rebel commanders who had negotiated secretly with de Gaulle

Evidence

According to General Jacquin, as he is today, a “killer” despatched from Tunis from the G.P.R.A. forced Si Mohamed — always the most reluctant of the Wilaya 4 leaders — to return to the fold, and imposed upon him the execution of his guilty peers. Lakhdar, Halim and Abdellatif were summarily put to death, while Si Salah — on account of his seniority and distinction as a maquisard — was ordered to make his way to Tunis and stand trial there. Many months elapsed, unaccountably, with Si Salah apparently still under arrest in Algeria. Jacquin’s B.E.L. attempted a cloak-and-dagger operation to liberate him, but without success. Then, in July the following year, Si Salah, evidently on his way to Tunisia at last, was killed in an ambush by a French patrol; little more than two weeks later, but in another corner of Algeria, Si Mohamed was also tracked down and killed in an opération ponctuelle mounted by the 11th Shock. The coincidence, and curious circumstances, of the deaths of the two leaders have encouraged anti-Gaullists in the French army to speculate, even today, that there may have been more to it all than met the eye. Undeniable it was that, following their deaths, no one was left on the Algerian side able to give evidence about the whole sad story of “Operation Tilsit”. — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1192

Categorization

• QUESTION: The coincidence of both leaders dying weeks apart, with no witness left, is worth probing — is there evidence of a deliberate silencing operation beyond the anti-Gaullist rumor?
• XREF: The internal purge of peace feelers parallels the earlier liquidation of moderate or wavering F.L.N. figures within the wilayas. — connects to: F.L.N. leaders imprisoned in France signed documents supporting Abane’s execution.; Interior F.L.N. commanders sought a separate peace that bypassed the G.P.R.A.; The G.P.R.A. liquidated the Wilaya 4 leaders who negotiated with de Gaulle. (+6 more)

Related

• The G.P.R.A. liquidated the Wilaya 4 leaders who negotiated with de Gaulle. (similarity 0.92)
• De Gaulle distrusted Si Salah’s renegades as turncoats against hierarchy. (similarity 0.90)
• The F.L.N. executed Si Salah for breaching discipline in treating with the French (similarity 0.89)
• The FLN itself executed Si Salah, not a French patrol (similarity 0.84)
• Interior F.L.N. commanders sought a separate peace that bypassed the G.P.R.A. (similarity 0.83)
• F.L.N. commanders risked being killed by their own side if they defected (similarity 0.82)
• Si Salah was executed by the FLN, not killed by the French (similarity 0.82)
• De Gaulle’s public appeal to the G.P.R.A. sealed Si Salah’s fate (similarity 0.82)
• F.L.N. leaders imprisoned in France signed documents supporting Abane’s execution. (similarity 0.81)
• F.L.N. propaganda silently erased the execution of the four rebel colonels (similarity 0.81)
• Interior fighters threatened to break from the G.P.R.A. and negotiate directly with de Gaulle. (similarity 0.80)
• Renouncing Si Salah forced de Gaulle to negotiate solely with the FLN (similarity 0.79)

Broader Connections

• F.L.N. commanders risked being killed by their own side if they defected #expands (0.85) — Horne, Alistair, A Savage War of Peace- Algeria 1954-1962, 1184