Djelloul Khatib

Djelloul Khatib alias commandant Djelloul (8 October 1936 – 6 February 2017) was a combatant for the Algerian independence and a public servant. During the war of independence he led the efforts towards the professionalization of the National Liberation Army (NLA). He contributed thereafter to building the civil service of newly independent Algeria.

War of Independence
Djelloul Khatib hails from the Casbah of Algiers. In 1956 he participated as a young freedom fighter to the battle of Algiers. He was then transferred to Egypt by the National Liberation Army (NLA) to attend military school. The Suez Crisis broke out just as he reported for duty in Cairo; he was mobilized and participated to the combats in Port-Said.

He was assigned thereafter to the NLA Eastern base along the Algeria-Tunisian border and was promoted to the rank of officer. He then joined the First Supply Company which was tasked with channeling arms and ammunition from the Tunisian border to the mountainous region of Kabylia where the fighting was particularly intense.By 1958 Djelloul Khatib was named Secretary General of the NLA’S Northern Zone Staff and subsequently of the NLA General Staff, under the direct command of Houari Boumediene. During the remaining years of war he led, together with other fellow officers such as Abdelkader Chabou and Slimane Hoffman, the efforts to professionalize the Liberation Army and to strengthen the support bases required to maintain the struggle for independence. He became during these years a close advisor to Boumediene.

Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Defense and of the Presidency
Once the independence achieved, he is appointed at age 26 Chief of staff of the Ministry of Defence (1962-1965) and then Chief of staff of the Presidency (1965-1970). He was tasked by Boumediene, then President of the country, to drive a number of defining initiatives of his administration. Djelloul Khatib set up the Comedor, a think tank in charge of developing the urban planning of the capital city of Algiers and to which contributed world renowned architects such as Oscar Niemeyer. Khatib also organized the transfer back to the homeland of the ashes of the Emir Abdelkader, an early leader against France colonial invasion in the mid-19th century who died in exile in Damascus.

Khatib also managed the negotiations that led to the signature of the Franco-Algerian agreement of 1968 – which regulates, until now, much of the administrative links between both countries.

He was one of the decision makers that made possible the success of the Algiers panafrican festival of 1969. Khatib was also tasked by President Boumediene to organize the visits to Algiers of personalities such as the Che Gueverra or Senator Edward Kennedy. The meeting with the later helped prepare the ground for a longstanding partnership between the United States and Algeria in the Hydrocarbon sector.

Oscar Niemeyer
As head of the Comedor, Khatib worked intensely with Oscar Niemeyer. This collaboration made possible the construction of a number of high-profile architectural projects such as the first university since the independence of Algeria in Constantine. Other projects resulting from this cooperation are today, even if not executed, an essential part of Oscar Niemeyer's legacy (Algiers mosque, Algiers Civic Center).

Governor
Khatib was appointed Wali (Governor) of Batna (1973-1976), Constantine – the third largest city of the country (1976-1980) and Oran – the second largest city of the country (1980-1982).

Secretary of State in Charge of the Civil Service
He was named Secretary of State in charge of the Civil Service (1982-1984). During his tenure, he was charged by Prime Minister Abdelghani to coordinate the visit of George H.W. Bush in 1983, the first one of a Vice-President of the United States to Algeria.

Ambassador
Djelloul Khatib was then appointed Ambassador to Argentina (1982-1984). He intensified economic and technical collaboration between both countries, particularly in civil nuclear power. These efforts led by 1989 to the construction in Algeria of the NOUR nuclear research reactor. As a mark of gratitude for strengthening the ties between Argentina and Algeria, President Raul Alfonsin, awarded him with the "es:Orden del Libertador San Martín". He was then posted as Ambassador to Spain between 1988 and 1989. There he marshalled the support to build the Maghreb–Europe gas pipeline between Algeria, Morocco and Spain. He also facilitated informal peace talks on the Basque conflict