It was designed to fill this void and recognize their service in what was officially called a "police action" to quell disorder, rather than a military campaign against an armed and organized enemy.

[2] Under pressure for years by veterans' organizations and from the personnel who served during the handovers in Tunisia and Morocco to get commemorative medals of their own, the French government finally ceded by a decree dated 26 July 2004[2] with an amendment to the 1958 decree governing the award.

The obverse, engraved by Georges Lemaire, bore an allegorical image of the warrior French Republic wearing a helmet adorned with and oak leaf wreath and surrounded by the relief inscription along the medal circumference "RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE" (English: "FRENCH REPUBLIC").

On the reverse, the relief inscription on five lines "MÉDAILLE" "COMMÉMORATIVE" "OPÉRATIONS SÉCURITÉ" "ET MAINTIEN" "DE L'ORDRE" (English: "MEDAL" "COMMEMORATIVE" "SECURITY OPERATIONS" "AND MAINTAINING" "ORDER") surrounded by a wreath of oak and olive leaves along the medal circumference.

The pre January 1958 variant had the reverse inscription on four lines "MÉDAILLE" "COMMÉMORATIVE" "D'AFRIQUE" "DU NORD" (English: "NORTH" "AFRICA" "COMMEMORATIVE" "MEDAL").