Ali Ammar, better known as Ali la Pointe, was born on May 14, 1930, in Miliana, Algeria, then under French colonial rule. An emblematic figure of the Algerian War of Independence, he remains one of the most striking symbols of the urban struggle waged by the National Liberation Front during the Battle of Algiers.
Born into a modest family, Ali Ammar grew up in a society deeply marked by colonial inequalities. From a very young age, he experienced poverty and quickly left school. His adolescence was marked by a difficult life in the working-class neighborhoods of Algiers, particularly in the Casbah, where he frequented marginalized circles and lived by petty crime. This existence led to several prison terms. It was during his incarceration that he became aware of the political situation in Algeria and embraced nationalist ideas. Prison became a place of ideological and personal transformation for him.
Upon his release, he joined the National Liberation Front (FLN), an organization cre...
