Disunity between the Berbers of the South and the Arabs of the North.

The French assimilation policy had created a group of Algerians who were so loyal to the French.

The divide and rule policy. The French gave a number of priviledges to their collaborators who in turn fed them with information concerning rebel bases and activities.

French military superiority. Whereas the FLN guerrilla had few outdated weapons, the French had a variety of up to date weapons.

Most young Algerians sympathised with the French and termed any resistance against them as a sign of backwardness and a fight against progress.

Lack of a common approach to the French colonialists led to unnecessary delays of independence.

Internal power struggles between the guerrilla commandos (wilayas) undermined the struggle

The existence of a big number of settlers proved an obstacle to nationalists.

The harsh French reactions to nationalistic activities was a great obstacle,

The partial reforms carried out by the French confused some Algerians who saw no reason of resisting the

The delay of foreign support contributed to the delayed attainment of success.

The creation of concentration camps or re-groupment villages by the French made life very hard for the FLN rebels.