He enrolled in the French Army in 1939 and served during World War II in 1944 on the Italian front. In 1947, he fought in the First Indochina War in the French Far East Expeditionary Corps where his bravery was dubbed “legendary”. In 1949 he was promoted captain and named to the Legion of Honour.[2][7]
Political career
See also: Years of Lead (Morocco)
Mohamed Oufkir (left) and Crown Prince Moulay Hassan (right) in 1956
After World War II, in 1949, Oufkir joined the military cabinet of Raymond Duval[2] whom he became aide-de-camp to.[5] In 1953, he became the assistant of Augustin Guillaume who was the Resident-General of Morocco then. He was involved in the negotiations for the return of Mohammed V[2] and had the task of putting pressure on Mohammed Ben Aarafa to abdicate.[8] When Mohammed returned from exile, Oufkir effectively became Mohammed V’s aide-de-camp[9] and interpreter.[10] After independence, he was appointed a high-ranking officer in the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces.[2]
During the 1958 Rif riots, Oufkir was Crown Prince Hassan’s close associate and served as the head of the secret services. Both were involved with the suppression of the revolt which resulted in the collective punishment of the Rif. This included expropriation, crop-burning, rape, forced disappearances, torture, mass executions and the displacement of people. This repression identified Oufkir as “the butcher of the Rif”.[11][12][13]
