Jacques Soustelle

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Person.png Jacques Soustelle  Rdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
(anthropologist, politician)
Jacques Soustelle, Bestanddeelnr 909-5719.jpg
Born3 February 1912
Died6 August 1990 (Age 78)
French OAS operative, in exile between 1961 and 1968, speaker at the 1979 JCIT

Career

World War II

Jacques Soustelle was appointed to head the Special Services Branch (DGHS) in Algiers in (1943–1944).

France government

In 1945, he served first as Minister of Information, then as Minister of the Colonies. From 1947 to 1951, he served as Secretary General of the Gaullist party Rassemblement du Peuple Français (RPF) and was one De Gaulle's closest counsellors.

Soustelle was a very close friend of Israel, particularly during the 1950s, and was among the forces behind the military pact between France and Israel. He was a personal friend of David Ben-Gurion and Shimon Peres as well as Herut leaders such as Menachem Begin. He paid numerous visits to this country, and headed the France-Israel Alliance Association.[1]

Algeria

He was nominated Governor General of Algeria by Pierre Mendès-France in 1955–56, where he advanced the Soustelle Plan promoting the integration of the Muslim community in the French Departments along the Mediterranean coast. Thanks to Soustelle's support during the May 1958 Algiers revolt, De Gaulle returned to power. Though he believed he would become Algeria Secretary, Soustelle was only named Information Minister in June 1958. In 1959, he was appointed Minister of State in charge of Overseas Departments by De Gaulle.

In 1962, Soustelle resigned from the French government because of his opposition to independence for Algeria. He went on to form the clandestine military organization OAS with Georges Bidault and General Raoul Salan.[2]

Exile

Later in 1962 Soustelle was charged with attempts against the state, and fled the country, remaining in exile for seven years.[3] Soustelle denied being a member of the Organisation de l'armée secrète (OAS), claiming only to have been a leader of the Conseil National de la Resistance (CNR). However, he ultimately dropped a court action against Robert Silman, who claimed the two organisations were one and the same.[4] He returned to France at the age of 58 following a general amnesty for political prisoners.[5]

War On Terror

Jacques Soustelle spoke at the 1979 Jerusalem Conference on International Terrorism, on "Liberty or License?"

 

Event Participated in

EventStartEndLocation(s)Description
Jerusalem Conference on International Terrorism2 July 19795 July 1979Israel
Jerusalem
The birthplace of the "War on Terror" doctrine, "a major international forum for the movement against détente".
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References

  1. French Friend Jacques Soustelle Dies At Age 78, The Jerusalem Post, 8 August 1990.
  2. Joan Cook, Jacques Soustelle, Leader in Fight For a French Algeria, Dies at 78, New York Times, 9 August 1990.
  3. Joan Cook, Jacques Soustelle, Leader in Fight For a French Algeria, Dies at 78, New York Times, 9 August 1990.
  4. Robert Silman, Obituary: Jacques Soustelle, The Independent, 11 August 1990.
  5. Joan Cook, Jacques Soustelle, Leader in Fight For a French Algeria, Dies at 78, New York Times, 9 August 1990.