The Assault

On December 24th, 1994, a group of four GIA militants seized control of an Air France A300 Airbus at the airport in Algiers. The plane, which was scheduled to fly to Paris, carried 227 passengers. The exact motives of the hijackers were unclear, but it was evident that they were heavily armed and resolute. They demanded the release of their “comrades” and insisted that the aircraft depart immediately. After protracted and intense negotiations between the French and Algerian authorities, permission was granted for the plane to take off. Central to the unfolding drama are three key figures: a GIGN operative, Carole Jeanton, a driven technocrat eager to exploit the situation for personal advancement, and Yahia Abdallah, a fervent jihadist from the Algiers slums, who was being influenced by a shadowy GIA agent, Ali Touchent.