Djamila Bouazza — Nationalist Fighter for Algerian Independence
Djamila Bouazza (1938–2015) was an Algerian nationalist who joined the FLN through Djamila Bouhired. She carried out operations in Algiers in 1957 and was sentenced to death before being released following Algerian independence in 1962.
15 November 2025
Djamila Bouazza was born in 1938 in Algeria and played a significant role in the armed independence struggle against French colonial rule. Her story is one of conviction, sacrifice, and survival.
Path to the FLN
Djamila was working at the Postal Cheque Centre in Algiers when she was recruited into the independence movement by Djamila Bouhired — one of the most iconic women of the Algerian Revolution. Under Bouhired's mentorship, she joined the FLN and became part of its urban operations network in Algiers.
Operation in Algiers
On 26 January 1957, Djamila Bouazza planted a bomb at the Coq Hardi bar in Algiers. The explosion killed four people and injured approximately sixty others. She was later arrested and expressed remorse for the civilian casualties caused.
Death Sentence and Liberation
Tried by a French military tribunal, Djamila was sentenced to death. The sentence was never carried out. Following the Évian Accords and Algerian independence in 1962, she was released along with other political prisoners.
Later Life
Djamila Bouazza lived in Algiers following her release, carrying with her both the weight of her choices during the revolution and the pride of having fought for her country's freedom. She died on 12 June 2015, aged approximately 78.
Legacy
She is remembered as one of the women who took up active roles within the FLN's Battle of Algiers campaign — a generation of fighters, many of them young women, who risked everything at a pivotal moment in Algerian history.