The Gafsa events is the name given to the armed operation carried out by commandos of the Libyan-backed Tunisian nationalist opposition in January 1980, after which they infiltrated the Tunisian city of Gafsa through the city of Tebessa in Algeria.[2] The attackers managed to take control of most of the city's centers, but their calls for the residents to revolt were unsuccessful. Tunisian security and army forces eventually managed to retake the city and capture the attackers,[3] including their leader Ezzedine Chérif.[4] The operation led to a sharp deterioration in relations between Tunisia and Libya and negatively affected the relationship of the Tunisian regime with the Algerian government, which was cold in the early 1980s.[citation needed]
| Gafsa events | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
|
Support: |
 Arab nationalists Libya | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Habib Bourguiba |
Ezzedine Chérif Ahmed al-Marghani Muammar Gaddafi | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| ~300 | 60 militants | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
|
| ||||||
References
edit- ^ Les trois décennies Bourguiba : témoignage
- ^ St John, Ronald Bruce (2013). Libya and the United States, Two Centuries of Strife. University of Pennsylvania Press, Incorporated. ISBN 9780812203219. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
- ^ Koven, Ronald (29 January 1980). "Tunisia Puts Down Assault by 300 On Southern City". The Washington Post. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
- ^ "رشيد خشانة: أربعون عاما على عملية قفصة لتي أضاعت علينا فرصا كبرى". ar.leaders.com.tn. Archived from the original on 4 November 2021. Retrieved 1 August 2022.