DjilaliBounaama

Si Mohamed, by his nom de guerre, was born on April 16, 1926 in Douar Beni Hendel (Ouarsenis), from a father who was a grocer. Not having finished primary school, he worked at the Boucaïd zinc mine near Orléansville (Chlef). A CGT trade unionist, he is also an activist of the PPA-MTLD and a member of the Special Organization (OS).

In 1951, he was the organizer of the Boucaïd miners’ strike which lasted 4 months. Wanted since the dismantling of the OS, he left for Belgium to work in the Borinage coal mines. Returning to Algeria, he was arrested on November 6, 1954, and  imprisoned in the prison of Orléanville then Barberouse (Algiers). Released in November 1955, he  joined the troops of the Algerian army in the Ouarsenis massif.

He successively became military chief of zone 3 of wilaya 4 in 1957, then ِCommander at the end of 1958 as military assistant to Colonel M’Hamed Bougara.

He will take over from Si Salah,  (Mohammed Zamoum),  to lead wilaya 4 without ever being promoted to the rank of colonel.

Djilali Bounaama died on August 8, 1961 in Blida, in the explosion of the villa Naïmi which served as a refuge for  the military leaders of wilaya 4.