MOLL-TADJADDINE SQUARE OR INDEPENDENCE SQUARE

This place is sadly famous for having been the scene of one of the most tragic events in the history of the city: the cut-off case.

On 23 October 1917, during a popular dance session on the square, a certain Moursal killed the marshal of the hosts Guyader and wounded Sergeant Malfait. The culprit was hanged immediately, but the investigation opened by Commander Gérard, the military governor of the city, revealed that aguid (notable) Al-Mayaguiné, the master of Moursal, could have sponsored the murder. To exonerate himself, the latter would have given the list of all fakis (scholars Muslims) involved in an alleged plot against the French. These dignitaries then hunted and beheaded at the cutting-cup for the next three months, causing the indignation of the population taking sides in the elite in a climate of hatred towards the French. A total of 115 people were killed during this period…