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Which groups fought against Spanish colonial forces in the Rif War?

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Spanish soldiers operate artillery cannons in a desert landscape near Melilla, with smoke billowing as a cannon fires during a 1930s battle. — Rif War Spanish artillery firing outside Melilla during the Rif War.

The Rif War (1921–1926) was primarily fought between Spanish colonial forces and the Rif peoples, who were Berber inhabitants of the mountainous region in northern Morocco.12

These indigenous fighters were led by Abd el-Krim, a skilled tactician who organized various local groups into a unified resistance movement. To sustain his campaign, Abd el-Krim utilized both persuasion and force to secure the support of these diverse Rifian groups, eventually establishing the Republic of the Rif in 1923.34

While the conflict began as a struggle against Spain, it expanded in 1925 when Rif forces entered French territory in Morocco to protect supply lines. This action prompted a coordinated military alliance between Spanish and French forces, who launched a joint offensive that ultimately overwhelmed the Rifian resistance.14