An impassioned, meticulously researched account of the short life of Algerian freedom fighter Ahmed Zabana, whose execution in 1956 by French colonial authorities ignited the "Battle of Algiers" — and the crucial phase of Algeria's struggle for independence.

Algeria, 1956. Soldier Henri Maillot, a member of the Algerian Communist Party (PCA), deserts the French army with a hoard of weapons destined to arm the rebellion. While the PCA attempts to establish formal contacts with the National Liberation Front (FLN) to unify their struggle, a dozen Communist fighters organize t…