Mohammed Seddik Benyahia

Mohammed Seddik Benyahia or Ben Yahia (Arabic: محمد الصديق بن يحيى; January 30, 1932 – May 3, 1982)^[1][2] was an Algerian politician and a militant nationalist during the war in Algeria. After independence he was Minister of Information (1967–1971), Higher Education (1971–1977), Finance (1977–1979), and Foreign Affairs (1979–1982).^[3]

Mohamed Seddik Benyahia
Born	January 30, 1932 Jijel, Algeria
Died	May 3, 1982(1982-05-03) (aged 50) Gottour, Iran (borders between Turkey and Iran)
Nationality	Algerian
Occupation(s)	Politician, Militant nationalist
Political party	FLN
Parent	Father's name: Ferhat

Early life

He was born on January 30, 1932, in Jijel.^[4] During the Algerian war, he took an active part in the struggle for independence of his country. He was secretary general of the presidency of the provisional government of the Republic of Algeria (GPRA) and a member of the Algerian delegation in negotiations with the French government in Evian in 1962.^[5] He was responsible for chairing the meeting of CNRA in Tripoli (Libya) in 1962. After the independence of his country, he held the post of ambassador to Moscow and London. He led the Algerian team that brokered the Algiers Accords.

Ministries he held

• Minister of Information from 1967 to 1971, When he organized the first Pan-African Festival in 1968.
• Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research from 1971 to 1977.
• Minister of Finance from 1977 to 1979.^[6]
• Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1979 till his death.^[7]

Death

On 3 May 1982, his plane was shot down on the Iran-Turkey border during his mediation mission in the Iran–Iraq War.^[8] Both Iran and Iraq rejected responsibility.^[9]

References

1. Jijel.info Archived 2007-10-17 at the Wayback Machine-Biographie de Mohamed Seddik BENYAHIA
2. "Il y a 30 ans disparaissait Mohamed Seddik Benyahia". Le Matin d'Algérie. 4 May 2012.
3. "hommage à Mohamed Seddik Benyahia : Fin politicien et diplomate de talent". El Moudjahid. 4 May 2016. Archived from the original on 23 January 2019. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
4. "Mohamed Seddik Benyahia "le jeune renard"". El Djazair. 2017. Archived from the original on 2019-01-23. Retrieved 2017-06-13.
5. "same reference above". Archived from the original on 2007-10-17. Retrieved 2008-08-14.
6. "Les argentiers de l'Algérie". Archived from the original on 2008-06-27.
7. From University of Jijel Archived 2008-10-15 at the Wayback Machine (Arabic)
8. "Mission Awry". Time Magazine. 1982-05-17. Archived from the original on October 25, 2012.
9. "Il y a 30 ans, la mort tragique de Seddik Benyahia et de ses compagnons". Alterinfo. 25 May 2012.

Further reading

Algerian newspaper El Watan May 26, 2012 "30 years ago, The Tragic death of Seddik Benyahia and his companions".