In the shadow of silence. The tragedy of the Harki [The book review: M. Kilali. Sous silence... Une tragédie harkie. Paris: Les Éditions du Menhir, 2022]
The article is devoted to the analysis of the book by the French historian Mick Kilali, dedicated to the tragedy of the Harki - the Algerians who fought on the side of France during the Algerian War of 1954-1962, and after the signing of the Evian Accords were disarmed and left to fend for themselves. Only a small part of the Harki, at the peril and risk of individual French officers, was taken to France, but even there they were perceived as traitors for a long time. M. Kilali, a specialist in the history of Algeria in the 19th century, the author of works dedicated to Emir Abd al-Qadir, the son and nephew of the Harki, therefore his work, written on the basis of the memoirs and stories of his family members, is deeply personal, and affects an important social a problem still unresolved in France. French society has little information about the fate of the Harki, although about 500,000 Harki and their descendants live in modern France. However, in the last twenty years, under Presidents J. Chirac, N. Sarkozy and E. Macron, the French authorities have tried to change the situation. In 2003, the «National Day of Remembrance of the Harkis and other participants in additional ties» was established, in 2012 N. Sarkozy officially recognized the responsibility of the French government for leaving the Harki in Algeria, in 2021 E. Macron officially asked for forgiveness from the Harki and their descendants and assured that a law would be passed on the «recognition and indemnification» of the Harki.