Khadra Profile

Moorishgirl reader David F. of London writes in to say that “after the Arab Woman Writer Who Writes About Sex, here comes the Arab Woman Writer Who Is Really A Man” and he sends us this link to the Guardian profile of Yasmina Khadra (a.k.a. Mohammed Moulessehoul).

“There were many misunderstandings because people found it hard to understand a writer who was a soldier,” says Moulessehoul (formerly Commandant Moulessehoul), who settled in France to pursue his writing career in 2001 after quitting the Algerian army. “I had to really fight against those who did not appreciate my work because they pigeonholed me as some sort of brute who was responsible for military massacres. In the eight years I led the fight against terrorism, there were no massacres. Let me tell you, it was a hard battle – there is no honesty or integrity among the pseudo-intellectuals I had to take on. There’s much more honesty and integrity among soldiers, trust me.”

Yeah, just ask the civilians. Later on, Moulessehoul explains that it was the Algerian army (of which he was a member for nearly 30 years) who sought to censor all his manuscripts. They feared for his integrity, I’m sure.