Houari Boumédiène

Born in the Guelma region and chief of the Armée de libération nationale's general staff during the war, Houari Boumédiène took power in 1965 and led Algeria through industrialization and an assertive foreign policy.

He shaped much of post-independence Algerian state-building and Third-World diplomacy in the 1960s and 1970s.

Under his rule, Algeria nationalized its hydrocarbons sector in 1971.