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An icon of contemporary wars of independence, the Algerian struggle against French power was one of the bloodiest of the century, reaching the staggering figure of hundreds of thousands of dead. The challenges presented to the socialist model of the FLN, however, are not exhausted by the defeat of colonial power. The complexities of this nation, which harshly maintained a non-alignment status during the Cold War, achieved unparalleled political pluralism in the region and faced the instabilities of an oil-based economy and the growing and aggressive presence of Islamic fundamentalism. All these factors impose dramatic crossroads for an Algeria that is still under construction.