Smain Lamari
Encyclopedia
Major General Smain Lamari was the head of an Algeria
n intelligence service, the Department of Counter-Espionage and Internal Security. Along with Generals Mohamed Lamari
(unrelated to him), Khaled Nezzar
, Larbi Belkheir
and "Toufik" Médiène
, he was one of the influential Algerian Generals. Lamari was close to Larbi Belkheir, now ambassador in Morocco. Lamari died from a heart attack, and was buried in the Cemetery El Alia reserved for Algerian personalities, in presence of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika
.
(Algiers
) in 1941, the son of a taxi-driver from the Titteri region, he quit high school to join the National Liberation Army
during the Algerian War of Independence
(reportedly in 1961). After a brief period in the police and marines, he spent most of his career in various Algerian intelligence services – the SM, DGPS and DRS. His photo was never published in the Algerian press — the only photo available of Lamari was published by the MAOL opposition group (Algerian Free Officers' Movement) . In 1991, he ordered the arrest of Islamic Salvation Front
(FIS) members Abassi Madani and Ali Benhadj.
to resign in January 1992, and who cancelled the legislative election won by the FIS . During the Algerian Civil War
, he became head of the Department of Counter-Espionage and Internal Security (DSI). He was in charge of secret operations against Islamist guerrillas and counter-espionage — a post which he occupied until his death, untouched by changes of government or reshuffles. In this capacity, he played a major part in infiltrating guerrilla organisations, especially the Armed Islamic Group
s (GIA), and liaising with the French security services. According to Mohammed Samraoui, a former officer, Lamari declared, in May 1992, before several officers: "I am ready to eliminate three million of Algerians if necessary to maintain the order threatened by the Islamists." .
Lamari's successes in the war against the Islamists included the elimination of the first core of the GIA (Meliani, Chebouti and Bâa Azzedine), infiltration of terrorist maquis (in particular in Chrea
), and the destruction of the FIDA
commandos which assassinated many intellectuals, journalists and artists between 1992 and 1994 .
Rumors claimed that President Mohamed Boudiaf, assassinated in June 1992, had envisioned to get rid of Lamari .
The Algerian Free Officers' Movement (MAOL), an opposition group in exile, controversially accused Lamari of playing a key role in organising the assassination of President Boudia], and of personally choosing Lembarek Boumaarafi as the assassin .
These rumors concerning Boudiaf's projects were shared with the French secret services, to whom Lamari entertained close links, especially with General Rondot and the DST
. Among other contacts, Rondot had spoken to Lamari in relation with the Martyrs of Atlas
's Affair. Yves Bonnet, the head of the DST, had required assistance against Islamic terrorism to his Algerian counterparts, and Smain Lamari was delegated by Mohamed Mediene
, in charge of the DRS, to be the French's interlocutor . A legend claims that Lamari was the one who provided information to the French which lead to the capture of Carlos the Jackal
in Sudan . Beside being a friend of Rondot, Lamari was also close to the prefect Jean-Charles Marchiani
, one of Pasqua
's men .
Furthermore, the DCE, headed by Lamari, assisted Western intelligence services in the struggle against Al Qaeda long before the September 11, 2001 attacks
.
(near Algiers) on which the Pharmalliance factory is built from the government through laws meant to encourage investment, while her father personally received a 1,035 square metre plot of land in Hydra (a prestigious neighbourhood of Algiers) by a special decree.
http://www.pharmalliance.dz/index.php?id_page=2http://www.agirpourlalgerie.com/smain.htmhttp://www.algeria-watch.org/fr/article/eco/terres/gestion_foncier.htm
, the ministers Abdelmalek Sellal, Chérif Rahmani, and Noureddine Moussa attended his funeral. The President of the Senate, Abdelkader Bensalah, was also there, as well as Ahmed Ouyahia
(twice Prime Minister), General Khaled Nezzar
, former Prime Minister Mouloud Hamrouche
, Issad Rebrab. Allegations were made that the Islamist Abdelhak Layada
, co-founder of the GIA, was also present, as well as Lamari's boss, General Toufik
.
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
n intelligence service, the Department of Counter-Espionage and Internal Security. Along with Generals Mohamed Lamari
Mohamed Lamari
Lt. Gen. Mohamed Lamari was Chief of Staff of the Algerian army during most of the Algerian Civil War.He was born on 7 June 1939 in Algiers, to a family originally from Bordj Benazzouz . He joined the French army, completing his training in the cavalry at the Ecole de guerre in Saumur...
(unrelated to him), Khaled Nezzar
Khaled Nezzar
Major-General Khaled Nezzar is an Algerian general and former member of the High Council of State of Algeria. He was born in the douar of Thlet, in Seriana in the Batna region. His father, Rahal Nezzar, was a former non-commissioned officer in the French army who had turned to farming after...
, Larbi Belkheir
Larbi Belkheir
Maj.-Gen. Larbi Belkheir was a noted Algerian retired general and political figure.He was born in Frenda in 1938, and joined the French army, reaching the rank of second lieutenant. In 1960, six years into the Algerian War of Independence, he changed sides and joined the National Liberation Army...
and "Toufik" Médiène
Mohamed Mediene
General Mohamed Mediene , also known as Toufik , is head of the Algerian secret services, the Intelligence and Security Department . He was born in 1939 to a Kabyle family from Guenzet , but grew up near Algiers at Saint-Eugene...
, he was one of the influential Algerian Generals. Lamari was close to Larbi Belkheir, now ambassador in Morocco. Lamari died from a heart attack, and was buried in the Cemetery El Alia reserved for Algerian personalities, in presence of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika is the ninth President of Algeria. He has been in office since 1999. He continued emergency rule until 24 February 2011, and presided over the end of the bloody Algerian Civil War in 2002...
.
Career
Born in BelfortEl Harrach
El Harrach is a suburb of the Algerian capital Algiers....
(Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
) in 1941, the son of a taxi-driver from the Titteri region, he quit high school to join the National Liberation Army
Armée de Libération Nationale
The Armée de Libération Nationale or ALN was the armed wing of the nationalist Front de Libération National during the Algerian War of Independence...
during the Algerian War of Independence
Algerian War of Independence
The Algerian War was a conflict between France and Algerian independence movements from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria's gaining its independence from France...
(reportedly in 1961). After a brief period in the police and marines, he spent most of his career in various Algerian intelligence services – the SM, DGPS and DRS. His photo was never published in the Algerian press — the only photo available of Lamari was published by the MAOL opposition group (Algerian Free Officers' Movement) . In 1991, he ordered the arrest of Islamic Salvation Front
Islamic Salvation Front
The Islamic Salvation Front is an outlawed Islamist political party in Algeria.-Goals:...
(FIS) members Abassi Madani and Ali Benhadj.
Algerian Civil War
Lamari was one of the Generals, along with Mohamed Touati, who forced President Chadli BendjedidChadli Bendjedid
Chadli Bendjedid was the sixth President of Algeria from February 9, 1979 to January 11, 1992.-Early career:...
to resign in January 1992, and who cancelled the legislative election won by the FIS . During the Algerian Civil War
Algerian Civil War
The Algerian Civil War was an armed conflict between the Algerian government and various Islamist rebel groups which began in 1991. It is estimated to have cost between 150,000 and 200,000 lives, in a population of about 25,010,000 in 1990 and 31,193,917 in 2000.More than 70 journalists were...
, he became head of the Department of Counter-Espionage and Internal Security (DSI). He was in charge of secret operations against Islamist guerrillas and counter-espionage — a post which he occupied until his death, untouched by changes of government or reshuffles. In this capacity, he played a major part in infiltrating guerrilla organisations, especially the Armed Islamic Group
Armed Islamic Group
The Armed Islamic Group is an Islamist organisation that wants to overthrow the Algerian government and replace it with an Islamic state...
s (GIA), and liaising with the French security services. According to Mohammed Samraoui, a former officer, Lamari declared, in May 1992, before several officers: "I am ready to eliminate three million of Algerians if necessary to maintain the order threatened by the Islamists." .
Lamari's successes in the war against the Islamists included the elimination of the first core of the GIA (Meliani, Chebouti and Bâa Azzedine), infiltration of terrorist maquis (in particular in Chrea
Chréa
Chréa is a town in Algeria, located in Blida Province, Bougara District, in a mountainous area named Tell Atlas, near Blida. This municipality has the Chréa National Park, one of the smallest national parks of the country, and a ski resort...
), and the destruction of the FIDA
FIDA
FIDA may refer to:*Federacion Internacional de Abogadas , a professional association*Fonds international de développement agricole, the French name for the International Fund for Agricultural Development...
commandos which assassinated many intellectuals, journalists and artists between 1992 and 1994 .
Rumors claimed that President Mohamed Boudiaf, assassinated in June 1992, had envisioned to get rid of Lamari .
The Algerian Free Officers' Movement (MAOL), an opposition group in exile, controversially accused Lamari of playing a key role in organising the assassination of President Boudia], and of personally choosing Lembarek Boumaarafi as the assassin .
These rumors concerning Boudiaf's projects were shared with the French secret services, to whom Lamari entertained close links, especially with General Rondot and the DST
Direction de la surveillance du territoire
The Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire was a directorate of the French National Police operating as a domestic intelligence agency. It was responsible for counterespionage, counterterrorism and more generally the security of France against foreign threats and interference...
. Among other contacts, Rondot had spoken to Lamari in relation with the Martyrs of Atlas
Martyrs of Atlas
On the night of 26–27 March 1996, seven monks from the monastery of Tibhirine in Algeria, belonging to the Roman Catholic Trappist Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance , were kidnapped in the Algerian Civil War. They were held for two months, and were found dead on 21 May 1996...
's Affair. Yves Bonnet, the head of the DST, had required assistance against Islamic terrorism to his Algerian counterparts, and Smain Lamari was delegated by Mohamed Mediene
Mohamed Mediene
General Mohamed Mediene , also known as Toufik , is head of the Algerian secret services, the Intelligence and Security Department . He was born in 1939 to a Kabyle family from Guenzet , but grew up near Algiers at Saint-Eugene...
, in charge of the DRS, to be the French's interlocutor . A legend claims that Lamari was the one who provided information to the French which lead to the capture of Carlos the Jackal
Carlos the Jackal
Ilich Ramírez Sánchez , better known as Carlos the Jackal, is a Venezuelan pro-Palestinian currently serving a life sentence in France for shooting to death two French secret agents and a Lebanese informer in 1975....
in Sudan . Beside being a friend of Rondot, Lamari was also close to the prefect Jean-Charles Marchiani
Jean-Charles Marchiani
Jean-Charles Marchiani, is a French prefect and politician. He is also a former officer of the French external intelligence agency .Jean-Charles Marchiani is a counter-terrorism expert, especially focused on Islamic fundamentalism...
, one of Pasqua
Charles Pasqua
Charles Pasqua is a French businessman and Gaullist politician. He was Interior Minister from 1986 to 1988, under Jacques Chirac's cohabitation government, and also from 1993 to 1995, under the government of Edouard Balladur...
's men .
Furthermore, the DCE, headed by Lamari, assisted Western intelligence services in the struggle against Al Qaeda long before the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
.
National Reconciliation program
Despite Lamari's adamant opposition to the Islamists and his membership in the Eradicateurs camp (Eradicators), he played a key role in the negotiations with the AIS, the armed front of the FIS, beginning in 2000. He convinced Madani Mezrag's men to surrender their arms.Pharmalliance SARL
Lamari's daughter, Amal Lamari, founded Pharmalliance SARL in 1997 (soon after graduating from university) and is its director-general. She received the 20,250 square metre site in Ouled FayetOuled Fayet
Ouled Fayet is a suburb of the city of Algiers in northern Algeria....
(near Algiers) on which the Pharmalliance factory is built from the government through laws meant to encourage investment, while her father personally received a 1,035 square metre plot of land in Hydra (a prestigious neighbourhood of Algiers) by a special decree.
http://www.pharmalliance.dz/index.php?id_page=2http://www.agirpourlalgerie.com/smain.htmhttp://www.algeria-watch.org/fr/article/eco/terres/gestion_foncier.htm
Funeral
Smain Lamari was buried in the Quartier des Martyrs in the Cemetery El Alia, in presence of most of Algeria's policy makers. Beside President Abdelaziz BouteflikaAbdelaziz Bouteflika
Abdelaziz Bouteflika is the ninth President of Algeria. He has been in office since 1999. He continued emergency rule until 24 February 2011, and presided over the end of the bloody Algerian Civil War in 2002...
, the ministers Abdelmalek Sellal, Chérif Rahmani, and Noureddine Moussa attended his funeral. The President of the Senate, Abdelkader Bensalah, was also there, as well as Ahmed Ouyahia
Ahmed Ouyahia
Ahmed Ouyahia is an Algerian politician who has been Prime Minister of Algeria since June 2008. He was previously Prime Minister from 1995 to 1998 and from 2003 to 2006. A career diplomat, he also served as Minister of Justice, and was one of the founders and a president of the RND party...
(twice Prime Minister), General Khaled Nezzar
Khaled Nezzar
Major-General Khaled Nezzar is an Algerian general and former member of the High Council of State of Algeria. He was born in the douar of Thlet, in Seriana in the Batna region. His father, Rahal Nezzar, was a former non-commissioned officer in the French army who had turned to farming after...
, former Prime Minister Mouloud Hamrouche
Mouloud Hamrouche
Mouloud Hamrouche was the Prime Minister of Algeria from September 5, 1989 to June 5, 1991. He was born in Constantine, Algeria. He was a leading member of the FLN. However, after serving as prime minister of Algeria he became involved in serious disputes with other party leaders who he said were...
, Issad Rebrab. Allegations were made that the Islamist Abdelhak Layada
Abdelhak Layada
Abdelhak Layada , also known as Abu Adlane, was one of the founders of Algeria's militant Islamist group Armed Islamic Group during the Algerian Civil War, and led it after the death of Mohamed Allel ....
, co-founder of the GIA, was also present, as well as Lamari's boss, General Toufik
Mohamed Mediene
General Mohamed Mediene , also known as Toufik , is head of the Algerian secret services, the Intelligence and Security Department . He was born in 1939 to a Kabyle family from Guenzet , but grew up near Algiers at Saint-Eugene...
.