Late president Ben Bella opened up to Echourouk TV

In an exclusive interview with the anchor Slimane Bekhlili broadcast on Echourouk TV, the late president Ahmed Ben Bella dwelt on several issues that marked and shaped for ever his private and political life that spanned more than half a century of militancy.

• He was a brilliant school boy and his wit surpassed his French schoolmates but a racist and extremist teacher shocked him with a phrase that will change his life for ever and turn him to a political rebel who enlisted in the Algerian People’s Party (PPA) because he was a staunch believer in the country’s independence.

• On apolitical level, Ben Bella shed light on several hot issues including the political assassinations of leaders like Abane Ramdane and the high jacking of the planer that transported him along with Ait Ahmed, Khider and Boudiaf with the likely complicity of the Moroccan prince Hassen II.

• As to his school years during the colonial period, the late president said” I was brilliant during my school years both in the primary and high schools but one day, our teacher has uttered a sentence that sounded like a thunder bolt and shaped my life ever after.. This extremist has treated our prophet by a charlatan”.

• “ I decide to quite school and move to Marseille, southern France, where a led a rebellious life and practiced football in the city’s club Olympic Marseille”, he added. Ben Bella went on saying that he has never forgotten his teacher’s words, that’s why he enlisted in the Algerian People’s Party led by Messali Al Hadj deeply convinced that it was the sole route to independence.

• The late president has noted that the French army was made up of 90% of Maghrebans who took part to major battles then including the liberation of Italy but the colonial French has rewarded the Algerians with the genocide perpetrated against innocent civilians in May 8, 1945 killing over 45 thousand people.

• From that period onward, one idea was tormenting my mind which was the way with which we should oust the colonials from our country, he added. He further noted that after breaking out of prison, he fled to France to meet Mehassas and Boudiaf with whom he stayed 10 days long to prepare the armed action.

• He has chided the historians for shedding light only on the meeting of the so called the “G22” while disregarding the meeting of the three leaders before. The meeting between the three leaders wound up with the conviction that the sole dialogue with France would be arms.

• As to the assassination of the revolutionary figure Abane Ramdane , Ben Bella said” I was in prison then, but I’m sure that Abane wouldn’t be eliminated without Krim Belkacem’s consent because he was the most influential among the three leaders and his instructions were executed”.

• The late president further added “ Abane Ramdane has ordered me three times to kill Mehssas because he uttered a swearword at moment of anger”. He went on saying” The imprisoned leaders have designated Krim Belkacem as their chief…The other leaders were convinced that Abane would kill them all if he is not eliminated”, Ben Bella added.

• But, the president added, that he and his fellow companions were not aware of the killing of Abane” I personally prefer Krim to Abane but this doesn’t mean that I endorsed his assassination, we were in prison me and Ait Ahmed at that moment and we heard about his killing a year after”.

• As to the role of Egypt during the revolution, Ahmed Ben Bella said” Nobody stood by the Algerian revolution like Egypt especially its president Djamel Abdenacer whose mediation was pivotal in the support of Saudi Arabia and Iraq.”.