Combattants de la Libération

Les Combattants de la Libération (CDL), also known as Le Maquis Rouge, were a guerrilla group established by the Algerian Communist Party (PCA) after the outbreak of the Algerian War of Independence.

[1] The FLN did not welcome a rival on the scene and its mistrust was heightened by memories of the participation of the Algerian Communist Party in the repression after the Setif riot in 1945.

Abdelkader Guerroudj, a Muslim, was a political officer who tried to establish a liaison between the organization and the FLN.

Three European members were Maurice Laban, Fernand Iveton and Henri Maillot.

[2] In April 1956, Maillot, a PCA member, deserted the French army, taking with him to the CDL an important stock of arms and ammunition.