Ahmed Zabana

Ahmed Zabana (; real name: Ahmed Zahana; 1926 – 19 June 1956) was an Algerian fighter who participated in the outbreak of the Algerian War. He was executed by guillotine by French authorities on 19 June 1956, in Algiers.

Early life Zabana was born in 1926 in Saint-Lucien (now Zahana). The youngest of nine children, he was a member of the Algerian Muslim Scouts, which inspired nationalist feeling in him. He joined the Movement for the Triumph of Democratic Liberties in 1950. He later became a member of the military wing of a pro-independence secret society, and participated in a mail operation in Oran in 1950. He was later arrested and spent three years in prison and an additional three years in exile. He is sometimes described as the first martyr (Chahid) to be the guillotined in the war.

Legacy The Ahmed Zabana National Museum and Ahmed Zabana Stadium in Oran are named after him. In 2012, the Algerian film director Saïd Ould Khelifa launched a biographical film Zabana! with the lead role of Zabana played by Imad Benchenni.