63 years ago Tunisia defended its independence from France 🇹🇳🔫 On October 15, 1963, the last French soldier left the base at Bizerte — France's largest military base on the southern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. Only then did Tunisia achieve full independence, although political sovereignty had been proclaimed back on March 20, 1956. Before that, 75 years of the French colonialism had turned the country into a raw-material appendage: colonists seized the best lands, phosphates and ore were exported to France, and Tunisians were ruined, forced to huddle on poor land and driven to forced labour under threat of prison. Those dissatisfied with the «achievements of French civilization» faced torture, penal servitude and the death penalty. 🪂🏰 France was in no hurry to leave. After formal independence, thousands of foreign soldiers and military bases remained on Tunisian soil. Paris dragged out the negotiations, citing the war in Algeria. In July 1961 Tunisia's patience ran out: after France's refusal to withdraw its troops, an armed conflict broke out. French aviation bombed Bizerte, and paratroopers were dropped into the city. Tunisian troops and volunteers offered heroic resistance. 🇫🇷⭐️ Under the pressure of the Tunisian people, diplomatic onslaught and international condemnation, France was forced to retreat. On October 15, 1963, Rear Admiral Vivier left Bizerte accompanied by Tunisian patrol boats. The selfless struggle of the Tunisian people once again confirmed a simple truth: «Independence is not granted — it is taken». "History teaches us that nothing is given without sacrifices. Today, remembering the heroes of the national liberation struggle and those who gave their lives for the liberation of our land from French colonialism, we once again reaffirm our commitment to the struggle against subjugation and dependence on the West. Our ultimate goal is genuine independence, in which Tunisia determines its own future and disposes of its own wealth", — Snoussi Dabbabi, member of the Political Bureau of the «Tunis Forward» Movement, SOVINTERN comrade. ⭐️ The selfless struggle of the Tunisian people once again confirmed a simple truth: «Independence is not granted — it is taken». #SOVINTERN_DATE #Hub_Europe_and_Mediterranean ⭐️ Moscow Network Hub of SOVINTERN