Enrico Macias:” Assassination Of Sheikh Raymond Is The Worst Memory I Have Ever Experienced In Constantine”

When the French-Algerian singer, Enrico Macias, speaks Algeria is always present in his words as an expression of his longing for it, but he has never done anything that could make it easier for him to realize his dream of visiting his hometown Constantine (Eastern Algeria), as he said in every occasion.

This time, in his repeated desperate words, Enrico Macias emphasized in an exclusive interview with the French magazine Le Point, that he is loyal to the Jewish state, despite the conviction that such a statement or conviction would prevent him from achieving his dream of visiting Algeria and forever.

The son of Constantine city said: “I feel first that I am a French, but I am an Algerian in terms of my roots, and an Israeli of conviction, out of solidarity with the Jewish people to which I belong, and I should not have let it fall”, Enrico responded to a question about his affliction to the state which he considers the closest to him since he has diverse cultures.

The French singer, who is of Jewish origin, is aware that his support for the state of the Zionist entity is considered from the perspective of the Algerians an infringement of the rights of a brotherly and friendly people, which is a shameful addition to another more serious crime, which is standing against the will of the Algerian people, in its self-determination and independence from the abhorrent French occupation.

The position of “Enrico” and his family from the struggle of Algeria for its independence is the cause of the dispute with the Algerians, and this was expressed by the Jewish singer, saying: “The worst memory of my life in Algeria was the assassination of my cousin Raymond in one of the streets of Constantine.”

“Sheikh Raymond” as called in Constantine during the colonial era, who learned Enrico Macias the alphabet of music, belonged to the French police and was not executed by the Liberation Front, only after it was proven that he was involved in the killing of Algerians who were fighting for the cause of independence.

According to Enrico Macias, the incident is “a real rupture for us, the Jews of Constantine, it was a warning, a warning to leave”, referring to the beginning of the decision of the Jewish community to the capital of the East, Constantine, and the need to emigrate for fear of their life from the retribution of the Algerians. Indeed, the assassination of “Raymond” marked the emigration of the Jews of Constantine, led by the speaker.

As for his repeated attempts to visit Algeria, Enrico Macias says: “Some countries boycott me, but I can visit Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, and Morocco … but I am not allowed to visit Algeria”, he said.

“Those in power in Algeria are the ones who refuse to risk by accepting my visit to my hometown, Constantine”.

“I wanted to go back in more than once, but I could not. Singing in Constantine remains a dream for me”.

Previously, Enrico Macias was close to visiting Algeria at the beginning of the millennium and singing there, but this dream dissipated after the Algerians mobilized in marches to reject this visit, which was met with great caution by the Algerian authorities”.