Houari Boumédiène

Mohamed Boukherouba (in Arabic: محمد بوخروبة), known as Houari Boumédiène (in Arabic: هواري بومدين), born August 23, 1932 in Aïn Hassainia located near Guelma and died December 27, 1978 in Algiers, is a colonel and an Algerian statesman. He was the second Algerian head of state from 1965 to 1976 and then President of the Republic from 1976 to 1978. A career soldier, Chief of the General Staff of the National Liberation Army from 1959 to 1962, he held high state positions, including being Minister of Defense under Ben Bella I in September 1962, a position he combined with that of Vice-President of the Council during the presidency of Ahmed Ben Bella from May 1963 to June 1965.