Djamila Zetoun

On February 5, 1957, French paratroopers captured Zetoun. She was 22 years old.

What followed is one of the most documented cases of torture during the Algerian War. The French used electroshock (a field telephone generator applied to her body), waterboarding (then called "the submarine"), and systematic rape. They wanted names. They wanted networks. They wanted her to break.

She did not break.

Instead, she stared down her torturers. When brought to trial in 1957, her body bore the scars of her ordeal, but her voice was steel. She did not deny placing the bombs. She justified them as acts of war against a colonial occupier. Her defense lawyer, the famous Jacques Vergès, turned the trial into an indictment of French imperialism. djamila zetoun

The verdict? Death by guillotine.

But Djamila Zetoun did not die. A global campaign—led by intellectuals like Simone de Beauvoir, Jean-Paul Sartre, and even General de Gaulle’s own wife—forced a commutation. In 1962, as Algeria won its independence, she was freed in a prisoner exchange.

Despite her best efforts to remain private, Djamila Zetoun has not been immune to controversy. Political adversaries have frequently criticized the couple's lifestyle. Specifically, accusations of "bourgeois bohemianism" have surfaced: while Mélenchon preaches revolution and the overthrow of capitalism, he and Zetoun have resided in a large apartment in the chic 7th arrondissement of Paris, overlooking the Esplanade des Invalides. On February 5, 1957, French paratroopers captured Zetoun

During a 2018 parliamentary hearing regarding Mélenchon’s use of European Parliament funds, questions were raised about the role of his staff, including Zetoun. Critics alleged a blurring of lines between political employment and personal relationship. However, Zetoun has maintained that her work for the party and her partner has always been legal and transparent, focusing on strategic advice rather than financial mismanagement.

After 1962, Zetoun did not fade away. She married a fellow FLN fighter and became a member of Algeria’s first post-independence parliament. She has spent decades advocating for the memory of the moudjahidates (female veterans) and for the recognition of torture victims. She has also been a vocal critic of the Algerian military’s later excesses, proving that a revolutionary does not turn into a sycophant once power changes hands.

As of my writing, Djamila Zetoun is still alive. She is over 85 years old. She lives quietly in Algeria, a grandmother who once stared down the guillotine. The French used electroshock (a field telephone generator

In an era of renewed debates about terrorism, torture, and resistance, Djamila Zetoun’s life forces us to ask uncomfortable questions.

The relationship between Djamila Zetoun and Karim Benzema began long before Real Madrid, long before the Ballon d’Or, and long before the controversy. They met as teenagers in Bron, a suburb of Lyon. At a time when Benzema was still a raw talent learning to finish chances, Djamila was his constant.

Their relationship history is marked by a significant break. The couple separated for several years in the mid-2010s. It was a period of turbulence for Benzema both on and off the pitch. However, true to the narrative of a "love story," they reconciled. Since their reunion, Djamila Zetoun has been a permanent fixture in Benzema’s inner circle, eventually tying the knot in a private ceremony away from the prying eyes of the Spanish press.