In 1957, three years after the outbreak of the war of national liberation by FLN militants, France launched a major campaign of repression against the movement. This episode was popularized by the film The Battle of Algiers by Gillo Pontecorvo. During this campaign, one of the organization's most important militants, Ali Ammar, known as Ali la Pointe, was killed along with three combat comrades. The French army surrounded the building which served as their hiding place. Refusing to surrender, the house was dynamited. In 2006 the remains of the building were converted into a Museum.