The Stance of the Azzaba Circle Members Towards French Colonialism: A Case Study of Sheikh Amhammad bin Yusuf Itfayish and Sheikh Ibrahim Bayyud

Abstract

This study examines the stance of the Azzaba Council (al-’Azzaba) regarding the French occupation of the M’zab Valley, focusing on two prominent figures: Sheikh Amhammad bin Yusuf Itfayish and Sheikh Ibrahim Bayyud.

From the outset, Sheikh Itfayish opposed the Protectorate Treaty concluded between the Mozabite notables and the French in 1853, calling for a total rejection of French colonial authority. However, the prevailing political circumstances compelled the signing of the treaty as the sole alternative to direct military occupation, the potential destruction of the region, and the annihilation of its inhabitants. The French soon breached the agreement by formally annexing the M’zab Valley in 1882, prompting Sheikh Itfayish to protest and demand the fulfillment of the treaty’s original terms—a position he documented extensively in his writings.

Following his death, Sheikh Ibrahim Bayyud carried forward the struggle. He opposed the compulsory conscription law, sought the termination of military rule, and advocated for the administrative integration of the M'zab region with the Department of Algiers (Algiers Prefecture). Furthermore, he championed the Arabic language and Islamic identity by establishing independent schools (Écoles Libres) and dispatching educational missions to Tunisia. With the outbreak of the Algerian Revolution, Bayyud emerged as its vocal proponent in the south, maintaining that his struggle was fundamentally for the territorial integrity of Algeria—a commitment solidified by his absolute rejection of the French project to detach the Sahara.