The massacres perpetrated on 8 May 1945 by the French colonial army were "premeditated" and were part of a plan meant to suppress any vague desire for the independence of the Algerians, said Thursday in Setif province (300-km east of Algiers) the secretary general of the Algerian Historians Union.

The assertions according to which the suppression was a response to "disturbances caused by the natives," are not based on any historical facts, Dr. Youcef Menasria told a conference on the massacres of 8 May 1945, organized by Setif University.