With all his ministers and advisers in prison, Lamine Bey relied on the counsel and support of the trade union leader Farhat Hached, but in December 1952 he was assassinated by extremist French settlers of La Main Rouge. Unable to resist de Hauteclocque any longer, Lamine Bey eventually signed the decrees on limited internal autonomy which had been formulated months previously in Paris, thereby allowing new municipal elections. However the reforms imposed by the French remained a dead letter – the nationalists launched a campaign of terror against both candidates and voters. This extended as far as the ruling family itself – on 1 July 1953 the Bey's heir apparent Azzedine Bey was assassinated inside his own palace, accused of conducting discussions of his own with the Resident General.