Mbarek Bekkay ( Arabic: مبارك البكاي; April 18, 1907 in

Berkane Berkane ( ber, translit=Berkane, ⴱⴻⵔⴽⴰⵏ) is a city in northeastern Morocco, in the tribal area of Aït Iznasen, limited by the Mediterranean to the north, the Kis river (Moroccan-Algerian border) and Oujda Province in the east, Nador ...

, Morocco – April 12, 1961) was the 1st

Prime Minister of Morocco The prime minister of Morocco (officially Head of Government, ar, رئيس حكومة المملكة المغربية, rayiys hukumat almamlakat almaghribia) is the head of government of the Kingdom of Morocco. The prime minister is chosen by t ...

between December 7, 1955 and April 15, 1958. Bekkay held the rank of colonel in the French army. He was the first

Prime Ministers of Morocco A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...

since its independence from the French protectorate.

Early life

Mbarek Bekkaï was born on April 18, 1907 in

, in the northeast of Morocco. He belonged to the

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

Béni-Snassen tribe. He attended the Military School of Dar El Beida, the present military academy of Meknes, from which he went out to lieutenant and joined the French army. He served excellently in World War II and rose to

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

rank.

Career

In 1939, in response to the Sultan's call, he went to France to participate in the World War II. At that time, he was wounded in the leg and subjected to captivity and subsequently transferred to Germany, and as a result of his severe injury to his leg, it was amputated. In 1942, he became

Caïd Qaid ( ar , قائد ', "commander"; pl. '), also spelled kaid or caïd, is a word meaning "commander" or "leader." It was a title in the Norman kingdom of Sicily, applied to palatine officials and members of the ''curia'', usually to those ...

Bni Drar Bni Drar or Ait Idrār ( Berber: ⴰⵢⵜ ⵉⴷⵔⴰⵔ, which means ''Children of the mountains'') is a municipality in the Oujda-Angad prefecture in Bni Iznasen region in the Oriental Region of Morocco. In the country's 2004 census, Bni Dra ...

. He was retired as 90% war invalid and was appointed

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in 1943. He became Pasha of Sefrou in 1944. He left active service in the French army in 1946 and was promoted to reserve

Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in 1953. He is one of the few pashas to have protested in 1953 against the deposition of Sultan Mohammed V, resigning from his post at Sefrou. He writes this telegram: "Not approving the coup de force which provoked the deposition of HM the Sultan of Morocco, and which I consider illegal on all counts, I have decided to resign from my duties as Pasha of Sefrou in order to be faithful in my soul and conscience. I cannot, in fact, serve a regime which I hold to be illegal. » He had the honor to sign the act of independence of Morocco on March 2, 1956 with Christian Pineau representing France, and April 7 with Martin Artajo representing Spain. He resigned as Prime Minister during the May 1958 crisis, which was created by the refusal to allow the People's Movement Party.

Death

Confronted with "recurrent health problems", he died in Rabat on April 12, 1961 - 45 days after King Mohammed V - and was buried in his hometown.

Awards

Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures The ''Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieurs'' (War Cross for foreign operational theatres), also called the ''Croix de Guerre TOE'' for short, is a French military award denoting citations earned in combat in foreign countri ...

Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 The ''Croix de Guerre 1939–1945'' (English: War Cross 1939–1945) is a French military decoration, a version of the ''Croix de Guerre'' created on 26 September 1939 to honour people who fought with the Allies against the Axis forces at any ti ...

* Legion of Honour

References

External link

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bekkai, Mbarek 1907 births 1961 deaths Moroccan Berber politicians Moroccan colonels People from Berkane People from Sefrou Prime Ministers of Morocco