Morocco’s Secret Role: Kingpin of Algerian Independence Revealed in Declassified French Documents

– bySylvanus · 3 min read
Morocco's Secret Role: Kingpin of Algerian Independence Revealed in Declassified French Documents

The classified French secret documents of July 27, 1959 addressed to General Challe in Algeria reveal the predominant role of Morocco in the Algerian revolution under the leadership of King Mohammed V until the independence of the neighboring country.

According to these highly confidential archives published by the Algerian political analyst Oualid Kebir, Morocco played a central role in the FLN’s war of liberation. After the independence of his country on March 2, 1956, King Mohammed V adopted a strategic vision declined in three axes. The first, to establish an autonomous Maghreb leadership, outside the Nasserist orbit. The objective was to establish Moroccan leadership of an "independent Maghreb Union" from Nasser’s Cairo bloc, while seeking to consolidate Morocco’s role as a leading power in North Africa. The second, to strengthen the aura of the Moroccan throne in the Arab world, by providing "remarkable aid" to the Algerian brothers.

Finally, to avoid a brutal break with Paris. The sovereign carefully balanced his relations with France by maintaining minimal financial and technical cooperation to avoid an open confrontation that could threaten Morocco’s recently acquired independence. This vision allowed him to gain the trust of the Arab world while maintaining links with the West, creating a complex but politically astute equation. An effective approach that had been praised by the late Algerian President Ahmed Ben Bella, a direct witness. He recounted an important meeting with King Mohammed V in Madrid. He met Mohammed V with 20 written requests, but the sovereign had already anticipated them all... and had proposed twice as many. "I was ashamed to take out my sheet because he had already proposed to us twice what we were going to ask," Ben Bella later revealed in an interview with Al Jazeera.

In a surge of solidarity, the kingdom flies to the rescue of Algeria. It becomes a real rear base of the Algerian revolution. It provided complete military, logistical and humanitarian assistance that fundamentally changed the course of the battle of Algeria against French colonization. Morocco authorized the establishment of military bases for the National Liberation Army (ALN) on its territory, welcomed Algerian refugees and provided them with political and humanitarian protection, issued Moroccan passports to members of the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN) and even used diplomatic pouches to transport sensitive communications and documents. The judicial authorities turned a blind eye to some revolutionary activities in the country, sometimes secretly releasing FLN members detained to support the cause.

Nador was transformed into a clandestine radio station serving revolutionary propaganda. As early as 1958, the FLN set up an intelligence cell in Morocco, led by Laghzaoui. It collaborated with the Moroccan services on several files: tracking French agents, interrogating Algerian detainees, protection, forgeries. Algeria benefited from military support on the ground. Dozens of strategically positioned logistics bases throughout southeastern Morocco provided essential infrastructure for the revolution. Not to mention the training camps, weapons depots and hospitals. Between 3,000 and 4,000 Algerian fighters were stationed in Morocco as the negotiations with General De Gaulle approached.

Algeria also benefited from popular support. Unions, parties, students aligned themselves behind Algeria. The UMT supported the UGTA. Students provided false papers and logistical relays. Even the Moroccan Communist Party (which was nevertheless banned) participated in the revolutionary effort. Despite Morocco’s exceptional support for the Algerian revolution, relations between Rabat and Algiers were not without tensions: friction over FLN territorial claims, clashes at the border, suspicions towards certain FLN agents, post-Rif revolt unease and distrust towards cadres like Khireddine. In addition to these tensions, Morocco also suffered the political and diplomatic consequences of this deep moral alignment.