Mohamed Touri

Mohamed Touri real name Mohamed Besnassi Algerian singer and theater man He was born on November 9 1914 in the Douirette district of Blida and died on April 29 1959 in Algiers Mohamed Touri was born in Blida on November 9 1914 He learned the Koran and Arabic language at the El Houda school in his hometown before joining El madrassa El Houra the Free School of Association of Algerian Muslim Ulemas in Constantine He returned to Blida in 1928 Subsequently he joined the Amel Blida scout theater troupe founded by Moussa Khedioui as well as the El Hayat association troupe directed by the master of ArabAndalusian music Mohieddine Lekhal It was there that he met many famous artists including Dahmane Ben Achour and Ben Kerkoura In 1947 he joined the Algiers Opera including the Arabic section which was directed by Mahieddine Bachtarzi In 1956 he was arrested by French authorities for his national principles and contacts with artists linked to the leaders of the Algerian national movement He died at Serkadji Prison on April 29 1959 The deceased left for posterity a rich list of achievements including films and comic songs The Blida theater in Algeria bears his name