The martyr, or elmoujahid, Ahmed Draia was born on May 10, 1929 in the city of Souk Ahras. He is the son of               Abd Al-hafiz and Hafsiyah bint Al-jilali; he studied in Koranic schools first and then joined the French school of Picard until 1942. Nevertheless, his studies did not prevent him from standing beside his family during the famines and crises of World War II.

Ahmed Draia’s patriotism crystallized after joining the Islamic Scouts between 1940 and 1945, and then it evolved during his membership of the Movement for the Triumph of Democratic Freedoms. In 1953, Ahmed Draia led a scout regiment alongside elmoujahid Badji Mokhtar. Throughout the first months of the liberation revolution, he was in charge of communication between the city of Souk Ahras and Ouenza.

He adhered to the Algerian revolution since its outbreak and participated in many battles in the eastern border regions. He was promoted and became the commander of the eastern base in charge of investigation in 1957, then the deputy commander of the Fourth Corps in 1958, and finally a member of the Eastern Base Staff Command.

After being accused of plotting against the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic (GPRA) in what was called “Laamouri’s Plot”, he was released from prison and sent to the Algerian-Mauritanian border to establish the National Liberation Army (ALN) throughout southern Algeria in 1960.

In 1964, i.e. after the independence, he was appointed as a member of the Central Committee of the National Liberation Front (FLN) and a member of the Revolutionary Council. He became the General Director of National Security from 1965 till 1977 when he was appointed Minister of Transport for two years.

In 1988, the outstanding moujahid Ahmed Draia died at the age of 63 years after a long life of political and armed struggle for liberating and building the Algerian nation and its institutions.