Ahmed Bencherif : ” Late Pt Houari Boumedienne was poisoned by members of his close entourage in Zéralda”.

In a lengthy statement to the newspaper “Echorouk Al Yaoumi”, the former commander of the historic IV province and former commander in chief of the National Gendarmerie, Ahmed Bencherif shed light on certain “controversial” historic facts which followed Algeria's accession to freedom and independence in 1962 by providing some truths, as he put it.

• Ahmed Bencherif harked back to the murky side surrounding the death of President Houari Boumedienne, stressing that the latter had been poisoned by some members of his close entourage in Zeralda but declined to give names saying only that the late Algerian President was the target of “an internal plot”.
• Ahmed Bencherif also refuted as “untrue” the recent remarks made by former President Chadli Bendjedid who affirmed that the ailing Houari Boumedienne had chosen him as his successor.
• Ahmed Bencherif brought his own truth by stressing that he was instead the one chosen by Boumedienne to succeed him but owing to the turn of events and after a broad – based meeting with the ANP military chiefs, he refused to take over at the helm of the nation before eventually backing Chabli Bendjedid to this post in order, he said, to ensure the stability of the country’s institutions.
• He asserted, in this respect, that the then members of the council of the Revolution were divided between 2 camps, one backing Chadli Bendjedid and the other lending support to Abdellaziz Bouteflika.
• Ahmed Bencherif further related how he succeeded in thwarting, with the help of loyal military officers, the coup attempt hatched by colonel Tahar Z’Biri and some insurgents, by going on the spot to Médéa province at the behest of late President Houari Boumedienne who gave him all the prerogatives to carry through his mission.
• Evoking the affair of colonel Mohamed Chaâbani and the death sentence brought against him in September 1963 by former President Ahmed Benbella, Ahmed Bencherif said that Chaâbani was directly responsible for the death of about 750 ” Messalists” who were coldly executed in Djelfa province after the proclamation of the ceasefire on March 19th 1962.
• For Ahmed Bencherif, these killings were tantamount to “crimes against humanity”.
• He added that he had refused to execute, on the orders of Benbella, Chaâbani and that the execution of the death sentence had been devolved upon the then national police chief Ahmed Draya.
• In a separate file, Ahmed Bencherif also evoked in his statement the Algerian officers who had deserted the French Army to join the ranks of the ALN describing them as ” faithful Mudjahidine”.
• Furthermore, Ahmed Bencherif did not miss the opportunity to demand that all the light be shed on the affair of the files of the so-called “fake Mudjahidine”.
• He bluntly pointed out, to this effect, that he had evidence that 60% of the recorded Mudjahidine were forgers.
• Ahmed Bencherif expressed his readiness to help in the “cleansing” of this burning file while demanding that the forgers be identified and punished by justice.
• Such an endeavour, he said, was motivated by the national duty and the preservation of the lofty memory of our glorious Martyrs.
• Lastly, Ahmed Bencherif announced his total backing for the candidacy of outgoing President Abdellaziz Bouteflika for a third mandate at the helm of Algeria.