A shahid () is, in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

, the official title of any person (Algerian or foreign) who fought during the

Algerian War The Algerian War (also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence) ''; '' (and sometimes in Algeria as the ''War of 1 November'') was an armed conflict between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front (Algeri ...

in the ranks of the independence movement (

mujahideen ''Mujahideen'', or ''Mujahidin'' (), is the plural form of ''mujahid'' (), an Arabic term that broadly refers to people who engage in ''jihad'' (), interpreted in a jurisprudence of Islam as the fight on behalf of God, religion or the commun ...

) and who fell on the field of honor or who died as a result of his commitment (

shuhada Istishhad () is the Arabic word for "martyrdom", "death of a martyr", or (in some contexts) "heroic death". Martyrs are given the honorific ''shaheed''. The word derives from the root ''shahida'' (), meaning "to witness". Traditionally martyr ...

). The shahids are designated in Algeria as ''"the symbol and pride of the Nation"''.

Definition

The word shahid is an official status that designates in Algeria any person who is a member of the National Liberation Front or the National Liberation Army, who fell on the field of honor during the Algerian War, or who died during this period as a result of injuries or illnesses, or who disappeared or died in prison or in places of detention or after their release as a result of torture suffered. People who died during events between July 5, 1954 and September 1, 1962 are considered "victims of duty", and are also considered shuhada. The term was also applied to victims of terrorism during the

Algerian Civil War The Algerian Civil War (), known in Algeria as the Black Decade (, ), was a civil war fought between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups from 11 January 1992 (following a 1992 Algerian coup d'état, coup negating an Islami ...

In arts and media

Cinema

* ''"Chronique des années de braise (وقائع سنين الجمر, Waqa'i' sinine ed-djamr)", by

Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina (; 26 February 1934 – 23 May 2025) was an Algerian film director and screenwriter. He is best known for his 1975 film '' Chronicle of the Years of Fire'', which won the at the 1975 Cannes Film Festival and became the ...

.'' * ''"La Bataille d'Alger (معركة الجزائر)" by

Gillo Pontecorvo Gilberto Pontecorvo (; 19 November 1919 – 12 October 2006) was an Italian filmmaker associated with the political cinema movement of the 1960s and 1970s. He is best known for directing the landmark war docudrama '' The Battle of Algiers'' (19 ...

is an Algerian-Italian film released in 1966.''

Théâtre

* "The Martyrs Return This Week (الشهداء يعودون هذا الأسبوع)", by Tahar Ouettar, adapted by

M'hamed Benguettaf M'hamed Benguettaf ( – 5 January 2014) was an Algerian actor and playwright. M'hamed Benguettaf died following a long illness on 5 January 2014, aged 75, in his hometown of Algiers. He was buried in El Alia Cemetery El Alia Cemetery ...

, directed by Ziani-Chérif Ayad

Littérature

* "Tahar Djaout, *Les Chercheurs d'os* (novel)", Éditions du Seuil, Paris, 1984, (). Reissued in the 'Points' Collection, no. 824, Éditions du Seuil, 2001 (). Translated into German, 1988. Translated into Catalan, 2003. * "Tahar Ouettar, *Les Martyrs reviennent cette semaine* (الشهداء يعودون هذا الأسبوع)", Baghdad, 1974 - Algiers, 1980 - (in Arabic) * Mohamed Cherif Ould El Hocine, "*Éléments pour la mémoire. Afin que nul n'oublie. Hommage à nos glorieux Chouhada. De l'Organisation Spéciale (OS) 1947 à l'indépendance de l'Algérie le 5 juillet 1962*", Casbah, Algiers, 2009, ().

Articles de journaux

* Mohammed Gadir, Portrait of the Chahid “Commander Ferradj”: Louedj Mohamed, known as “Commander Ferradj”, born on 1934 at Ain Ghoraba (Tlemcen).

Monuments of the martyrs

References

Military veterans topics {{Algeria-hist-stub