ABSTRACT
Chapter 3 begins with an account of the Algerian war of independence against French rule and the formation of the National Liberation Front or FLN. It then turns to the post-colonial period and the new state under the rule of the FLN. Attention is given to the status of Islam in independent Algeria and the competing political visions of FLN leaders, including Houari Boumediene. The chapter continues with the formation of Islamist opposition to the FLN in Algeria, focusing on the establishment of the Islamic Salvation Front and the Armed Islamic Group. The events of the Algerian civil war and the conditions in place at the outbreak of the Arab Spring conclude the chapter.
