Battle of Philippeville

Battle of Philippeville
Part of Algerian War
Date 20 August 1955 Location Philippeville Result French military victory but breakdown in inter-communal relations
Belligerents
FLN	France

The Battle of Philippeville was part of the Algerian War between France and Algerian rebels, primarily the National Liberation Front (FLN) The battle took place on August 20, 1955 and centered on the Algerian town of Philippeville, though the FLN also made attacks on surrounding areas.

Prelude

The Algerian War had begun on November 1, 1954 when the first major attack of the FLN was launched, consisting of "scores of scores of spectacular attacks.^[1] The conflict began to escalate, as evidenced by the remarks of then-Minister of the Interior, François Mitterrand: "I will not agree to negotiate with the enemies of the homeland. The only negotiation is war!"^[1]:2 The French adopted an increasingly aggressive policy in Algeria, and in early March 1955, the French government of Prime Minister Pierre Mendes-France was replaced by that of Edgar Faure.

To help combat the insurgency, Paul Aussaresses was dispatched to restart the intelligence unit from scratch, which had been disbanded during peacetime.^[1]:11 Aussaresses set up the unit and started to collect intelligence and establish a network of informants and field agents.

The battle

Aussaresses was surprised by a set of attacks the FLN launched on June 18, 1955, which his intelligence unit had not heard anything about beforehand. After this, a more proactive policy was adopted, which resulted in the discovery of the FLN's plan to launch a massive frontal assault on August 20 at noon, with the primary objective of taking Philippeville. The FLN was not powerful enough to capture a large city, such as the capital at Algiers, but Philippeville was a mid-sized town and an important port city.

In the days immediately before the attack, FLN commandos took up positions in cellars within the town, while several thousand more fellagha prepared to attack the French garrison troops in Philippeville, which numbered about 400.^[1]:35 The French quietly prepared for the anticipated attack, not even acting against the commandos who they knew were there, for fear that the FLN would realize their plan had been discovered.

Fighting first broke out during an hour before the planned attack, when the deputy police commissioner in charge of public safety, Superintendent Filiberti, took four of his men outside the town to make an unrelated arrest. The small police detachment was ambushed by about 500 fellagha, but was able to escape to Philippeville. The main attack began on the town around noon, and the fellagha, reportedly under the influence of narcotics,^[1]:44 attacked without any regard for their own safety. The FLN attacking forces and hidden commandoes came up against unexpected French defensive positions both within and around the town. One hundred and thirty-four fellagha were killed in the streets of Philippeville, and several hundred more wounded.Seventy-one French civilians were killed by the FLN as well as were 52 Muslims. The latter included prominent local politicians as well as other Muslims considered as collaborators by the FLN. ^[2]

While the main assault was going on, there were also side actions in the countryside around Constantine. One was an attack on El-Halia, a sulphur-mining community where 130 Europeans had lived with about 2,000 Algerian Muslims in peace. Reportedly local Muslims were encouraged to rise up against the Europeans after the FLN told them there would be no risk, because Egyptian and American troops were landing that day to expel the French from Algeria.^[1]:49 Shortly before noon on 20 August four groups of fifteen to twenty FLN commandos each, accompanied by local Muslims went from house to house in the European quarter of the village. Thirty-seven European civilians were killed, including ten children. A further thirteen were left for dead.^[3] Babies were chopped into pieces and smashed against walls, while women were raped, disemboweled and decapitated.^[1]:47-8 The men were off working in the mines when the fellagha attacked and some were dragged from their cars and killed as they returned home for their midday meal. Only six families who barricaded themselves in a single house with sporting weapons escaped unscathed. Weapons at the mine were locked up because the person in charge of the key had gone to the beach.

Three hours later, French paratroops from Philippeville arrived in El-Halia supported by military aircraft. Initially ordered to take no prisoners, the paratroops subsequently gathered about 150 Muslims together and the next morning carried out a mass execution of them.^[3]:121[4]

The effect of the killings by both sides in Philippville, El-Halia and elsewhere was to destroy any hope of inter-communal reconciliation. The French administration allowed pied-noir settlers to arm themselves and form self-defense units, measures which had been vetoed by the reformist governor-general Jacques Soustelle a few months earlier.Visiting Philippeville Soustelle recorded that now "the Europeans saw terrorists in every Muslim, the Muslims feared reprisals by the Europeans.".^[3]:121 European vigilante groups are reported to have subsequently carried out summary killings of Muslims.

Death toll

The French authorities stated that seventy-one Europeans and fifty-two Muslims were killed by the FLN-led mob on 20 August while 1,273 Muslims died in what Soustelle admitted were "severe" reprisals. The FLN subsequently claimed that 12,000 Muslims were killed^[3]:122

References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Aussaresses, Paul [Gen.] (2006). The Battle of the Casbah. Enigma Books. p. 1. ISBN 1-929631-30-8. 
2. ↑ Adam Shatz, “The Torture of Algiers,” NY Review of Books, volume 49, number 18, 21 November 2002.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Horne, Alistair (2006). A Savage War of Peace. NYRB Classics. pp. 120–1. ISBN 978-1590172186. 
4. ↑ Gisèle Halimi, Milk for the Orange Tree, page 114