Abd el-Krim (redirected from Abd al-Karim)

Abd el-Krim (äb'dĕl-krĭm`), 1882?–1963, leader of the Rif tribes of Morocco, called in full Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Karim al-Khattabi. An important figure in the administration of the Spanish Zone until 1920, he took up arms against Spanish rule. In 1921 his small force defeated a disorganized and ill-equipped Spanish army. In the next three years he strengthened his position and in 1924 drove the Spanish back to Tétouan. After capturing his only rival, Raisuli, he advanced (1925) into the French Zone. Defeated by combined Franco-Spanish forces, he surrendered in 1926 and was deported to Réunion. He escaped (1947) to Egypt, was awarded (1958) the title national hero by King Muhammad V of Morocco, and in 1962 announced he was returning to Morocco. Abd el-Krim died a year later, before he reached his destination.

Bibliography

See study by D. S. Woolman (1968).

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Abd el-Krim

 in full Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Karim al-Khattabi

(born 1882, Ajdir, Mor.—died Feb. 6, 1963, Cairo, Egypt) Berber resistance leader against Spanish and French rule in northern Morocco. He was chief Muslim judge for Morocco's Melilla district. He became disillusioned with Spanish policies and eventually led a resistance movement with his brother. He set up the Republic of the Rif in 1921 and became its president. In 1926 he was forced to surrender when faced by a combined French and Spanish army. Exiled to the island of Réunion, in 1947 he received permission to live in France but took asylum in Egypt while en route. When Morocco became independent (1956), Muhammad V invited him to return, but he refused because of the continued presence of French troops in North Africa.