The Massacre of April 7, 1947 (popularly in Moroccan Arabic: ضربة ساليغان darbat saligan 'Strike of the Senegalese,' more officially: مجزرة 7 أبريل 'Massacre of April 7' or أحداث 7 أبريل 'Events of April 7') was a massacre of working-class Moroccan civilians in Casablanca committed by Senegalese Tirailleurs in the service of the French colonial empire.[2][3] The attack was instigated by the French authorities in an attempt to disrupt the visit of Sultan Muhammad V to the Tangier International Zone to deliver the Tangier Speech demanding the independence of Morocco and the unification of its territories.[4]
History
editIn the days leading up to the sultan's speech, French colonial forces in Casablanca, specifically Senegalese Tirailleurs serving the French colonial empire, carried out a massacre of working class Moroccans. The massacre lasted for about 24 hours from 7–8 April 1947, as the tirailleurs fired randomly into residential buildings in working-class neighborhoods, killing 180 Moroccan civilians. The conflict was instigated in attempt to sabotage the Sultan's journey to Tangier, though after having returned to Casablanca to comfort the families of the victims, the Sultan then proceeded to Tangier to deliver the historic speech.[5][6]
April 7 Plaza (ساحة 7 أبريل) in Derb Kebir is named in memorial of the events.[7]
References
edit- ^ "France-soir". Gallica. 1947-04-09. Retrieved 2023-01-31.
- ^ "«ضربة ساليغان».. مجزرة خلفت أزيد من 2000 ضحية بالبيضاء". مغرس. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
- ^ "أحداث 7 أبريل 1947 بالدار البيضاء: صفحة مشرقة في سجل الكفاح الوطني من أجل الحرية والاستقلال". مغرس. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
- ^ "The 1947 French massacre in Casablanca". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
- ^ Atlasinfo (6 April 2016). "Evènements du 7 avril 1947 à Casablanca, un tournant décisif dans la lutte pour la liberté et l'indépendance". Atlasinfo.fr: l'essentiel de l'actualité de la France et du Maghreb (in French). Retrieved 16 March 2019. [verification needed]
- ^ Maghraoui, Driss, ed. (2013). Revisiting the colonial past in Morocco. London: Routledge. p. 151. ISBN 978-0-415-63847-0. OCLC 793224528. [verification needed]
- ^ الذكرى الـ 75 لأحداث 7 أبريل 1947 بالدار البيضاء.. استحضار لنضالات أبناء هذه الحاضرة المجاهدة في مسيرة الكفاح الوطني, Moroccan Press Agency (MAP)