Christophe Lafaye

Born

1977-08-20

Biography

Christophe Lafaye, born August 20, 1977, is a French historian. A reserve officer in the engineering corps between 2010 and 2022, Christophe Lafaye completed his doctoral thesis on combat engineers in Afghanistan, under the supervision of Rémy Porte. It was published in 2016 by the CNRS. A doctor of history, he is an associate researcher at the University of Burgundy. His work also focuses on the use of chemical weapons by the French army's special weapons sections during the Algerian War. He documented this use of weapons, which violated the Geneva Protocol, with journalist Claire Billet, first in a report for XXI magazine, then in a documentary film, Algérie section armes spéciales (Algeria: Special Weapons Section), which was canceled by France 5 in 2025. This postponement sparked controversy.