Arab Democratic RepublicMoroccanRefugee camps1975Solidarity with the Sahrawi peopleSelf-determinationSADRAfricaPeopleAlgerianActivistsUnited NationsIndependenceRABATReferendumRefugeesArmed conflict1991RepublicMorocco'sPolisario1976ObstaclesCeasefireSystematicallyDakhlaMauritaniaKingdom of MoroResistanceSovereignFriendshipTrump'sFactoSovereigntyAlgiersSystematicHuman rightsStateProvincesDiplomaticSupportOrganizationOccupationGovernmentInternationalCeutaDisputePolitical
Arab Democratic Republic12
- It formed a government-in-exile in 1976 and declared the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). (mbendi.co.za)
- The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic controls a small portion of the area, which was formerly Spanish territory. (breitbart.com)
- Last Monday, the AU approved Morocco's re-entry into the bloc which it quit in 1984 in protest at the admission of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) declared by the Polisario Front at the height of a war for the territory. (worldbulletin.net)
- As such, the ambassador of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) in Algeria, Abdelkader Taleb Omar, affirmed the need to inform international public opinion on the situation in which the Sahrawi people is suffering in order to take the necessary measures to end these serious violations committed by the Moroccan occupation. (entv.dz)
- In addition to the massive security regime that enforces the occupation and prevents uprisings from gaining traction, the Moroccan state constructed a sand berm to separate the Sahrawi population in the Occupied Territories from those in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). (jadaliyya.com)
- The President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Secretary General of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali, warned, on Monday, in Boumerdes (eastern Algiers), of the aggressive policies through which Morocco seeks to pass subversive agendas that threaten peace in the region. (echoroukonline.com)
- Significantly, Western Sahara is claimed by Morocco as its southern provinces but also by the Sahrawi as a nascent Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic sovereign state that seeks greater international recognition. (psu.edu)
- The Sahrawi government in exile, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), opposes the occupation and claims that 30 Sahrawi political prisoners have gone on hunger strike this year alone. (middleeasteye.net)
- In the course of the Western Sahara conflict in 1976, the Sahara Arab Democratic Republic (DARS) was proclaimed (also known as the Saharan Arab Democratic Republic) on the territory of the former Spanish colony of the Spanish Sahara (Spanish Sahara Occidental). (petwithsupplies.com)
- The flag of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, which was adopted in February 1976, is composed of three horizontal stripes from the top in black, white and green. (petwithsupplies.com)
- The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is only a partially recognized state. (petwithsupplies.com)
- ARTifariti is a project of the Ministry of Culture of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (RASD) and the Association of Friendship with the Sahrawi People of Seville (AAPSS). (artifariti.org)
Moroccan51
- The Moroccan government has targeted advocates like Khaya for their work defending the region's Sahrawi people and advocating for an independent Western Sahara. (democracynow.org)
- RABAT, Morocco (AP) - Adidas acknowledged on Friday that the design for its new jersey collection for Algeria's national soccer team was inspired by Morocco's zellige mosaic pattern, resolving a dispute with the Moroccan government that had accused the sport apparel company of "cultural appropriation" of its heritage. (wtrf.com)
- A lawyer for the Moroccan government, Mourad Elajouti, sent "a legal warning" to Adidas on Sept. 30, demanding that the German company removed the collection within two weeks or released a statement "to identify the zellige art of Morocco as an inspiration" for the design of the Algerian team's jerseys. (wtrf.com)
- The company added it has "deep respect for the people and craftsmen of Morocco," prompting officials in the North African country to express pride over its efforts to defend Moroccan cultural heritage on the global stage. (wtrf.com)
- Morocco granted temporary legal status to United Nations-recognized asylum-seekers and thousands of economic migrants, pending an overhaul of its laws on asylum and foreigners on Moroccan soil. (hrw.org)
- WASHINGTON, Mar 11 2014 (IPS) - Even as U.S. and Moroccan executives meet to discuss strengthening private sector ties between the two countries, advocacy groups are raising concerns about plans by a U.S. energy firm to explore for oil in the contested territory known as Western Sahara. (ipsnews.net)
- There's a lot going on in Morocco, and the question is how can it leverage what it has to attract American investments to Morocco that can then be directed to a European market or south to the African markets," Jean AbiNader, the executive director of the Moroccan American Trade and Investment Centre, a non-profit established by Morocco's King Mohammed VI, told IPS. (ipsnews.net)
- While international investors in renewable energy have long favoured Morocco, enabling the construction of solar plants and wind farms, U.S. and European corporations are also rushing to take advantage of concessions for possible oil reserves, some of which are potentially located in the Western Sahara, which many people view as under Moroccan occupation. (ipsnews.net)
- Sahrawis [indigenous Western Saharans] are standing on the sidelines of this project, waving their arms and telling companies to stop doing this on behalf of the Moroccan government. (ipsnews.net)
- Unlike Morocco, the Polisario Front did not want to allow Moroccan settlers in the Western Sahara to participate in the referendum. (ipsnews.net)
- To date, no other state recognises Moroccan sovereignty over the Western Sahara, which is on the United Nations list of Non Self-Governing Territories. (ipsnews.net)
- The Sahrawi population remaining in areas under Moroccan occupation is subjected to grave human rights violations, such as torture, forced disappearances and arbitrary detention. (wsrw.org)
- Robert Zoellick, then the United States Trade Representative, stated in 2004 in reference to the Free Trade Agreement between the USA and Morocco that "The United States … do not recognize Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara" and added that "the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) covers trade and investment in the territory of Morocco as recognized internationally, and does not include Western Sahara. (wsrw.org)
- Today, 1800 of 2000 workers are Moroccan settlers who have illegally been moved into the territory. (wsrw.org)
- Since August 2021, Algeria has severed diplomatic relations with Morocco, cut off gas shipments that previously ran through Morocco to Spain, and accused Moroccan forces of killing three Algerian citizens in the disputed territory of Western Sahara. (ecfr.eu)
- A decisive moment was President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara in December 2020 in exchange for Morocco normalising relations with Israel. (ecfr.eu)
- Most recently, Spain shifted its policy to endorse Morocco's autonomy plan for Western Sahara following a sustained Moroccan pressure campaign that included sending waves of migrants into Spanish territory. (ecfr.eu)
- The attack came only two days after Moroccan Foreign Minister Taieb Fassi-Fihri accused Spanish journalists of "distorting the facts about Morocco and the regional conflict over the Moroccan Sahara," the Moroccan media reported. (cpj.org)
- For their part, participants in this conference stressed the need to implement the international charters and resolutions to put an end to gross violations of human rights, conducted by the Moroccan occupier against the Sahrawis in the occupied territories, and allow the Sahrawi people to exercise their right to self-determination and independence. (entv.dz)
- The Sahrawi diplomat said that the inability of Morocco to legitimize its occupation of the Sahrawi territories and to take the issue out of its legal framework (cause of decolonization), has pushed the Makhzen authorities to seek other means to cover this failure, including normalization with the Zionist usurper entity, which, contrary to all Moroccan forecasts, "has caused it more problems both internally and externally. (entv.dz)
- For his part, the deputy at the National People's Assembly (APN), Badaoui Tamime denounced the media blackout on what is happening in the occupied Sahrawi territories, insisting that "it is imperative to have a real mobilization to confront the practices of the Moroccan occupation, in complicity with certain parties. (entv.dz)
- While a UN-brokered ceasefire put an end to armed hostilities in the territory in 1991, the Sahrawi people have continued to live under the Moroccan armed forces' oppressive occupation, and what peace exists in the area is fragile at best. (africavenir.org)
- LIFE IS WAITING: Referendum and Resistance in Western Sahara looks at forty years of Moroccan occupation and the Sahrawi nonviolent struggle for self-determination by a people for whom colonialism has never ended. (africavenir.org)
- The combination of expansive security forces, a sand berm, and the construction of Moroccan institutions and infrastructure throughout the territories has allowed the settler-colonial project to evolve into a full-blown military occupation. (jadaliyya.com)
- Morocco has thus far been able to avoid demands for withdrawal by not only repeating its legitimate claim to the territory, but also claiming that withdrawal would be a crisis for Moroccan national security. (jadaliyya.com)
- Out of the forty-three Sahrawis interviewed in the summer of 2014, every single person claimed that the Moroccan security forces ensured security for Moroccans, and security from Sahrawis: "If a crime is committed, the first thought is that a Sahrawi did it. (jadaliyya.com)
- [2] The feeling of racial discrimination and persecution throughout the territories is a common grievance of many Sahrawis, regardless of whether or not they actively oppose the Moroccan regime. (jadaliyya.com)
- The development of Moroccan institutions and infrastructure within the territories has established preferential treatment for Moroccan settlers, Sahrawi-Moroccan settlers, and Sahrawi residents that fully support the Moroccan occupation at the expense of Sahrawi dissenters. (jadaliyya.com)
- In order to provide support for those experiencing discrimination in Moroccan institutions, Sahrawi communities have attempted to create social networks and organizations that can help with coping and overcoming these obstacles. (jadaliyya.com)
- According to the UN, however, Western Sahara is still a Non-Self-Governing Territory, and, as such, not subject to Moroccan sovereignty. (regjeringen.no)
- A month later, President Donald Trump threw fuel on the fire and jeopardized the traditional U.S. role as a neutral broker between the parties by recognizing Moroccan sovereignty over the territory in exchange for Morocco normalizing its relations with Israel . (crisisgroup.org)
- Moroccan authorities immediately banned al-Shamal for employing this racist language, but the press on both sides of the Mediterranean continued to use terms like "massive invasion" and "plague" to denote the sub-Saharan migrants' repeated attempts in September and early October to escape from Africa into the territory of the European Union. (merip.org)
- Though the Algerian-Moroccan border has been closed since 1994, Oujda has become a main entry and expulsion point for clandestine immigrants to Morocco. (merip.org)
- The Moroccan official noted that Morocco, which is on its territory, defending its unity and striving so that a portion of its population stops living in the camps of Tindouf, took the initiative of proposing autonomy which allows to include all Sahrawi segments and which meets the Kingdom's vision of territorial management. (maroc.ma)
- Morocco has indeed secured a substantial diplomatic victory, and the United States has freed itself to sell drones to the Moroccan military for use in the ongoing conflict with the Polisario. (shu.edu)
- But the executive does not trust Morocco, which has shown that it has no qualms when it comes to using its own people and allowing teenagers and children to risk their lives for the sake of a diplomatic offensive - in this case, to pressure Spain into recognizing Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara. (elpais.com)
- The move triggered a war that year between the Moroccan government and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro (Polisario Front), which seeks self-determination for the Sahrawi people in the territory. (elpais.com)
- Drawing from Moroccan and Continental cultural theory, his presentation will reflect on how the oppressive Moroccan "makhzen" government apparatus impinges on freedom of speech in Morocco and holds serious implications for the disputed territory of Western Sahara, occupied by Morocco. (psu.edu)
- Last Sunday, Moroccan security forces arrested six Sahrawi demonstrators in the occupied territory of Western Sahara after protests broke out in response to the death of a hunger striking Sahrawi prisoner, Hassana al-Wali. (middleeasteye.net)
- Therefore, as of today, the United States recognizes Moroccan sovereignty over the entire Western Sahara territory and reaffirms its support for Morocco's serious, credible, and realistic autonomy proposal as the only basis for a just and lasting solution to the dispute over the Western Sahara territory. (archives.gov)
- The United States believes that an independent Sahrawi State is not a realistic option for resolving the conflict and that genuine autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty is the only feasible solution. (archives.gov)
- Despite the progress made by Morocco with regard to diverse questions relating to human rights and democracy, the committee is nevertheless concerned about a number of alleged human rights violations in Western Sahara, as well as the humanitarian situation in the Tindouf camps, and proposes a number of recommendations to be addressed to the Moroccan authorities and to representatives of the Polisario Front and Algeria. (coe.int)
- 1. The Parliamentary Assembly welcomes the effective progress made by Morocco on various questions relating to human rights and democracy, as underlined in Resolution 1942 (2013) on the evaluation of the partnership for democracy in respect of the Parliament of Morocco, including the creation, in 2011, of the Moroccan National Human Rights Council (CNDH) and other organisations for the protection of human rights. (coe.int)
- 4. The Assembly notes, in particular, that Western Sahara remains a disputed territory, regarded as a "non-self-governing territory" by the United Nations and under de facto Moroccan administration, and that some of the Sahrawi population in the territory and of the refugees in the Tindouf camps in Algeria, who are linked to the Polisario Front, are opposed to this situation. (coe.int)
- In 1975, as the Spanish colonial forces left Western Sahara Moroccan forces invaded it and divided Western Sahara between Morocco and Mauritania, despite an ICJ ruling recognizing that the Sahrawi people are entitled to self-determination. (crowdvoice.org)
- In 1979 the Mauritanian forces withdrew from the territory and Moroccan forces took control over most of the territory. (crowdvoice.org)
- The internationally-recognized leadership of the Sahrawi people, the POLISARIO front, has effective control over about 20% of the territory, which is walled off by a Moroccan-constructed 2,700 km-long separation barrier. (crowdvoice.org)
- Despite agreeing in 1991 to hold a referendum in which the Sahrawi people can vote for either independence of integration into Morocco, the Moroccan regime and postponed holding the referendum for almost two decades. (crowdvoice.org)
- The Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara involves serious abuses of human rights, including napalm and white phosphorus bombardments of Sahrawi refugee camps and mass forced disappearances. (crowdvoice.org)
- ARTifariti was born in 2007 as a collective action against the Wall of Shame that breaks in two the territory of Western Sahara, the last colony of Africa, under illegal and brutal Moroccan occupation. (artifariti.org)
- The Sahrawi people, victim of Moroccan expansionism and aggression and subjected to genocide, displacement, repression and torture, have managed, under the leadership of the Frente POLISARIO, to achieve a quantum leap in record time that have brought about radical changes. (spsrasd.info)
Refugee camps6
- Tens of thousands of Sahrawis live in Polisario-run refugee camps in Algeria. (prwatch.org)
- In Tindouf, we visited Sahrawi refugee camps, where we found conditions to be satisfactory, taking into account the difficulties posed by the climate and desolate location. (hrw.org)
- Approximately 165,000 Sahrawis are languishing in refugee camps in the inhospitable Algerian desert since 1975. (wsrw.org)
- Many Sahrawi Arabs live in refugee camps in Algeria. (euobserver.com)
- CHAHID EL-HAFEDH (Saharawi refugee camps) - The Ministry of Affairs for the Occupied Territories and Saharawi Communities has denounced the silence of the international community in the face of the genocide and crimes perpetrated by Morocco against the defenceless Saharawis in the occupied areas of Western Sahara. (porunsaharalibre.org)
- According to the United Nations, around 90,000 Sahrawi people still live in several refugee camps in Algeria. (genevacall.org)
197510
- Most of the Western Sahara is controlled by Morocco after it invaded in 1975. (breitbart.com)
- They stem largely from a dispute over the Western Sahara, a territory annexed by Morocco in 1975. (wtrf.com)
- As Spain prepared to withdraw from its colonial territory in 1975, Morocco stepped in and occupied most of the Western Sahara. (hrw.org)
- Most of Western Sahara is occupied by Morocco since 1975. (wsrw.org)
- The International Court of Justice in its 1975 Western Sahara Advisory Opinion established that Morocco has no legal claim to Western Sahara. (wsrw.org)
- The Western Sahara was a Spanish colony until 1975, when Spain relinquished control and Morocco annexed the territory. (cpj.org)
- In October 1975, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) rejected claims from Morocco and Mauritania regarding their alleged sovereignty over the territory. (regjeringen.no)
- Morocco has occupied the area since 1975. (euobserver.com)
- Western Sahara was previously occupied by Spain until 1975 when Morocco annexed the colony . (elpais.com)
- Western Sahara is a United Nations designated non-self-governing territory that has been subject to an occupation by Morocco since it invaded in 1975. (middleeasteye.net)
Solidarity with the Sahrawi people1
- Solidarity with the Sahrawi people is inspired by one of the constants of the Algerian people, namely support for all just causes of liberation," said Mr. Hidaoui, recalling that Algeria had " backed the Sahrawi issue since the beginning and continues to express its unconditional solidarity with this cause. (entv.dz)
Self-determination8
- The United Nations has called for self determination for the Sahrawi people and has expressed its opposition to the Trump administration's move. (breitbart.com)
- Trump's decision to throw the Sahrawi people under the bus ditches three decades of U.S. support for their self-determination via a referendum of the Sahrawi people on the territory's future status," Bolton, a vocal critic of Trump, outlined. (breitbart.com)
- In 1991, a truce was negotiated with the promise on a referendum on the right to self-determination of Western Saharan inhabitants, the Sahrawi. (lu.se)
- While authorities often tolerated protest demonstrations, in Western Sahara, they systematically prevented gatherings supporting self-determination for the contested territory. (hrw.org)
- Morocco is not willing to allow the people the right to self-determination today, and the oil industry is becoming an obstacle in terms of putting pressure in Morocco to accept that right. (ipsnews.net)
- The United Nations have repeatedly said that this illegal occupation must end and that the Sahrawi population has to be allowed to freely exercise their right to self-determination through a free, fair and transparent referendum. (wsrw.org)
- That same opinion affirmed that the Sahrawi population has a right to self-determination, which includes, inter alia, the right of permanent sovereignty over its natural resources. (wsrw.org)
- In the article featured in Foreign Policy the authors looked at the self-determination movement of the Sahrawi people of Western Sahara and how it has been undermined by the Trump administration's recent recognition of Morocco (through a Tweet) as sovereign over the territory. (shu.edu)
SADR4
- Territory claimed by the SADR, viz. (wikipedia.org)
- 2 Area of the whole territory of ( Western Sahara ) claimed by SADR. (wikipedia.org)
- In November 1984, the Polisario Front's SADR was recognised by the Organisation for African Unity leading to the withdrawal of Morocco from the OAU in protest. (mbendi.co.za)
- Morocco will continue to mobilise to delegitimise the SADR. (worldbulletin.net)
Africa8
- The state of Western Sahara or Sahrawi Republic lies along the coast of West Africa between Mauritania to its south and east, and Morocco on its northern border, and forms part of the West African region. (mbendi.co.za)
- Western Sahara is a disputed territory on the northwest coast of Africa bordered by Morocco, Mauritania, and Algeria. (ifitweremyhome.com)
- The tensions between these two heavily armed countries have raised concerns within the region and in Europe that Morocco and Algeria could drift into open conflict, risking massive destabilisation in North Africa with all the consequences that would entail for the European Union. (ecfr.eu)
- We call on Morocco to grant access to Laayoune for all journalists and to investigate the recent attacks on Spanish journalists," said Mohamed Abdel Dayem, CPJ's Middle East and North Africa program coordinator. (cpj.org)
- Monday's summit in Addis Ababa followed an intense diplomatic battle with the Polisario's backers, led by Algeria and South Africa, which opposed Morocco rejoining the AU. (worldbulletin.net)
- Continental heavyweights Algeria and South Africa have been backers of the Sahrawi Republic, the domestic political movements that lays claim to the territory along the northern Sahara's Atlantic seaboard. (sabcnews.com)
- However, AP mines remain a critical threat for the population especially on the other side of the berm and Morocco should now join the Ottawa Convention" added Fred Meylan, Geneva Call's Programme Director for Africa after the destruction. (genevacall.org)
- Algeria is sandwiched between Tunisia and Morocco on the north coast of Africa on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. (istizada.com)
People13
- Sahrawi people have been waiting "a long time for a referendum" to decide their future, says Khaya. (democracynow.org)
- But it also states that "while the specific contracts … are not in themselves illegal, if further exploration and exploitation activities were to proceed in disregard of the interests and wishes of the people of Western Sahara, they would be in violation of the principles of international law applicable to mineral resource activities in Non-Self-Governing Territories. (ipsnews.net)
- The occupation of Western Sahara has resulted in enormous suffering and deprivation for the Sahrawi people, the rightful owners of the land and the natural resources of Western Sahara. (wsrw.org)
- Four decades later, the world continues to look the other way as the Sahrawi people face arrests, torture, and disappearances for demanding their independence. (africavenir.org)
- The result of the referendum could very well be unification with Morocco, or a fully autonomous state, but there have been innumerable obstacles put in place to prevent the people from participating in a democratic process. (jadaliyya.com)
- Instead, they decided to back a brutal war against the Sahrawi people in support of Morocco's illegal occupation of the territory. (africaworldpressbooks.com)
- Morocco is systematically breaking the human rights of Sahrawi people. (euobserver.com)
- This annual international event demonstrates each year, with renewed determination, the strength, continuity and wide scope of the movement of solidarity with the struggle of the Sahrawi people for freedom and independence. (spsrasd.info)
- I would also like to applaud the tremendous efforts that have been made in record time and under great difficulties by the friends of the Sahrawi people in the municipality of Vilanova i La Geltru andin Catalonia and Spain in close cooperation with the Task Force and the representations of the Frente POLISARIO in Catalonia and Spain. (spsrasd.info)
- Ladies and Gentlemen, The organisers have decided to open the Conference with a deserved tribute to a great man in the history of the struggle of the Sahrawi people and the struggles of peoples in general for restoring their usurped rights, Martyr Mohamed Abdelaziz, the late President of the Sahrawi people. (spsrasd.info)
- He is the model for the peaceful Sahrawi people that are averse to violence and who have been forced to resort to armed struggle, a legitimate right of colonial peoples, in defence of their right to live in dignity. (spsrasd.info)
- With every day that goes by the Sahrawi people are more confident in the victory and independence, and the network of solidarity with their just struggle keeps on growing and expanding. (spsrasd.info)
- The Sahrawi state, as eternal and practical embodiment of the will of the Sahrawi people, has become an irreversible national, regional and international fact. (spsrasd.info)
Algerian2
- Following years of armed conflict between Morocco and the Algerian-backed Polisario Front, the international community established the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) in 1991. (ipsnews.net)
- On Monday, at least 10 Spanish journalists were prevented from reaching the Saharan city of Laayoune, which is part of an ongoing territorial dispute between Morocco and the Algerian-backed Polisario Front. (cpj.org)
Activists3
- In Life Is Waiting, join an incredible cast of Sahrawi activists and artists as they offer their answers. (africavenir.org)
- However, Sahrawis are not legally allowed to form any type of civil society organizations, regardless of whether or not they are focused on politics, social programs, or economic types of assistance: "Activists are forced to meet inside of each other's homes, and make sure to avoid clandestine police forces. (jadaliyya.com)
- But according to Sahrawi activists from Dakhla, it was only after persistent pressure from friends and family that Wali was eventually taken, in custody, to a civilian hospital and then a military hospital in the city. (middleeasteye.net)
United Nations4
- In 1988, both Morocco and the Polisario Front agreed to a United Nations (U.N.) Settlement Plan (the "Settlement Plan. (hrw.org)
- In 2002, Morocco awarded contracts for oil exploration in the Western Sahara to a U.S.-based company, Kerr McGee, and the French-based Total S.A. In response, the United Nations issued what is known as the Corell Opinion regarding the legality of resource extraction in Western Sahara. (ipsnews.net)
- High-level Polisario Front officials, including the Prime Minister and the Minister of Defence, as well as representatives of Geneva Call, the Sahrawi Campaign to Ban Landmines, the Mine Action Coordination Centre of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), Mine Tech international, the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) and the Sahrawi Association of Mine Victims observed the event. (genevacall.org)
- 2. At the same time, the Assembly underlines that under the terms of Resolution 1818 (2011) granting the status of partner for democracy to the Parliament of Morocco on 21 June 2011, it expects Morocco to continue to seek the settlement of international disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations. (coe.int)
Independence14
- The Polisario Front, a political group of indigenous Sahrawis, wants independence. (prwatch.org)
- The final future of the state of Western Sahara will be settled when the forthcoming UN-supervised referendum is held in which the country's inhabitants must choose between independence or integration with Morocco. (mbendi.co.za)
- Sahrawis from the Algeria-backed Polisario Front have sought independence for the region for decades. (wtrf.com)
- What had begun as an issue of decolonization erupted into armed conflict, as the Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro (Polisario Front), the Western Saharan liberation movement, fought for independence from Morocco, and over 100,000 Western Saharan (Sahrawi) refugees fled to southwestern Algeria, where they settled in tent camps. (hrw.org)
- 1 The referendum would ask Sahrawis to choose between independence or integration into Morocco. (hrw.org)
- After calling for Western Saharan independence from Spain, Morocco took control of the territory, which it calls the Southern Provinces, in 1976 after the Spanish withdrew. (ipsnews.net)
- As part of this effort, the UN sought to offer a choice to the peoples of the Western Sahara between independence (favored by the Polisario Front) or integration into Morocco. (ifitweremyhome.com)
- It put the world's most powerful country in Morocco's camp on a question of fundamental importance to the kingdom, at a time when tensions over Western Sahara had already reignited after the breakdown of a longstanding ceasefire between Morocco and the pro-independence Polisario Front movement. (ecfr.eu)
- The independence movements in Algeria and Morocco had close ties, but when Algeria joined Morocco as an independent state in 1962, relations between the countries quickly deteriorated. (ecfr.eu)
- Morocco will "never recognise" Western Sahara's independence despite rejoining the African Union after a decades-long dispute over the territory, Deputy Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said in published remarks Sunday. (worldbulletin.net)
- As part of the peace process, Sahrawis were due to vote about independence in 1992. (euobserver.com)
- After two years of diplomatic deadlock, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has appointed a new envoy for Western Sahara, a territory disputed between Morocco and the pro-independence Polisario Front, which represents the ethnic Sahrawi population of the territory. (crisisgroup.org)
- This is in the buffer zone between territory controlled by Morocco and the land claimed by the Polisario - the Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro , the rebel movement fighting for the independence of the former Spanish territory of Western Sahara , now under Rabat 's control - effectively blocking transportation between Morocco , Mauritania and countries further south. (fairobserver.com)
- Wali was an active member of the pro-independence indigenous Sahrawi movement and was also known for his human rights work on torture and police brutality. (middleeasteye.net)
RABAT4
- Government and business leaders from the United States and Morocco are gathering in Rabat this week for the second annual Morocco-U.S. Business Development Conference. (ipsnews.net)
- Nasser Bourita says Rabat will never change stance that Western Sahara is an integral part of its territory. (worldbulletin.net)
- He served for the 1998-99 academic year as Senior Fulbright Fellow in Communication and Culture at the Faculty of Letters, Mohammed V University in Rabat, Morocco, and returned there in the summer of 2011 as a Fulbright Specialist. (psu.edu)
- Morocco, however, claims the territory forms its "southern provinces" and is part of a historic "greater Morocco" with Rabat maintaining near full control of the area. (middleeasteye.net)
Referendum6
- Human Rights Watch has determined that Morocco, which is the stronger of the two parties both militarily and diplomatically, has regularly engaged in conduct that has obstructed and compromised the fairness of the referendum process. (hrw.org)
- During this period, the U.N. would have certain powers including responsibility for monitoring law and order in the territory in order to ensure that conditions for a free and fair referendum existed, as well as the right to ensure that laws or measures that could obstruct a free and fair referendum were suspended. (hrw.org)
- MINURSO intended the referendum to determine whether the Western Sahara would become an independent state or part of Morocco, but the vote was never able to be implemented due to disagreements over who was eligible to take part. (ipsnews.net)
- This referendum is supposed to allow the decolonized peoples of the Western Sahara decide the fate of the territory and their own legal status within the territories. (jadaliyya.com)
- But Morocco stopped the UN-negotiated referendum from taking place. (euobserver.com)
- According to international law, the future of the area designated by the UN as non-independent territory depends on a referendum, on the holding of which no agreement has yet been reached. (petwithsupplies.com)
Refugees3
- The transitional period included, among other provisions, a timetable for the reduction ofMoroccan troops in the territory, the exchange of prisoners of war by the parties and repatriation of refugees. (hrw.org)
- Tens of thousands of Sahrawis have fled to neighboring Algeria, where over 125,000 refugees still live in camps that were intended to be temporary. (africavenir.org)
- Young refugees in Algeria camps feel betrayed by EU over Western Sahara, threaten attacks on Morocco, as UN chief Ban Ki-moon makes rare trip to 'forgotten' conflict. (euobserver.com)
Armed conflict1
19911
- In May 1991, the Polisario Front and Morocco ended many years of fighting following a UN sponsored peace settlement. (mbendi.co.za)
Republic2
- The Sahrawi Republic has potential deposits of oil, natural gas, uranium, iron and phosphates. (mbendi.co.za)
- The Sahrawi Republic, the state declared by the fighting POLISARIO Front, was then admitted into the OAU. (africaworldpressbooks.com)
Morocco's6
- The European Union and African Union are similarly opposed to Morocco's annexation of the territory. (breitbart.com)
- Morocco's Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication demanded last month that Adidas pull the new collection off the market alleging that the design on the jerseys of the rival North African team depicts a traditional mosaic of colored earthenware tiles, known in Morocco as zellige. (wtrf.com)
- Morocco's control and exploitation of Western Sahara also hurts the Sahrawis' labor rights and their economic development. (wsrw.org)
- AU membership would not change Morocco's stance that the Western Sahara is an integral part of its territory, he said. (worldbulletin.net)
- This tactic consequently legitimates Morocco's severe military presence throughout the territories and the need for local and secret police forces. (jadaliyya.com)
- The United States affirms, as stated by previous Administrations, its support for Morocco's autonomy proposal as the only basis for a just and lasting solution to the dispute over the Western Sahara territory. (archives.gov)
Polisario10
- The judicial activism in a relatively uncharted area in this field, external relations, was analyzed through a qualitative case study of the CJEU case Polisario Front , concerning the application of a EU trade agreement to the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara. (lu.se)
- The Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro (Polisario Front) is a national liberation movement composed of native Sahrawis and supported by neighboring Algeria. (cpj.org)
- The return of Morocco is a direct challenge to the presence of the Polisario within the AU," the diplomatic source said. (worldbulletin.net)
- In November 2020, fighting flared up between Morocco and the Polisario Front. (crisisgroup.org)
- Is the recent skirmish between Morocco, the Polisario Front and its patron Algeria a threat to regional stability or just more posturing? (fairobserver.com)
- The Polisario claimed no knowledge of the action and labeled Morocco 's response as an "act of war. (fairobserver.com)
- Morocco benefits from the perception that the Polisario - and, by inference, Algeria - are more interested in fomenting instability in a critical region where terrorism in the neighboring Sahel is of concern rather than in engaging in formal negotiations to resolve the conflict. (fairobserver.com)
- To answer a request from the Polisario Front, Geneva Call also conducted a four-day training of trainers on international humanitarian norms for 13 Polisario Front military instructors and one representatives of the Sahrawi Human Rights Commission. (genevacall.org)
- However, the status of the territory is still a subject of dispute between Morocco and the Polisario Front. (genevacall.org)
- In particular, the Parliament of Morocco should be invited to continue to develop a culture of human rights in Western Sahara and to be open to discussions with all representatives of Saharan civil society, as well as with the Polisario Front representatives based in the Tindouf camps, in order to develop mutual confidence and to facilitate negotiations. (coe.int)
19763
- Formerly the Spanish colony of Rio de Oro, Western Sahara was annexed by both Morocco and Mauritania when Spain withdrew in February 1976. (mbendi.co.za)
- After Spain withdrew from its former colony of Spanish Sahara in 1976, Morocco annexed the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara and claimed the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. (ifitweremyhome.com)
- The North African kingdom quit the AU's predecessor, the Organisation of African Unity, three decades ago amid a dispute over the body's recognition of Western Sahara, most of which has been controlled by Morocco since 1976. (sabcnews.com)
Obstacles1
Ceasefire1
- What happens next could determine the fate of the 29-year-old ceasefire that marked the cessation of hostilities and the beginning of UN efforts to resolve the status of the territory that Morocco claims is part of its kingdom. (fairobserver.com)
Systematically1
- According to a report by the French organization France Libertés - Fondation Danielle Mitterrand, the Sahrawis have been systematically marginalized from the phosphate industry in Western Sahara. (wsrw.org)
Dakhla2
- In terms of schooling, there are trade schools in Laayoune, Dakhla, and Smara, but all colleges and universities are located within Morocco proper. (jadaliyya.com)
- To facilitate progress toward this aim, the United States will encourage economic and social development with Morocco, including in the Western Sahara territory, and to that end will open a consulate in the Western Sahara territory, in Dakhla, to promote economic and business opportunities for the region. (archives.gov)
Mauritania4
- After Mauritania withdrew from the territory in August 1979, it was incorporated into and administered by Morocco. (mbendi.co.za)
- Later that year, Spain entered into an agreement with Morocco and Mauritania concerning the transfer of power over Western Sahara. (regjeringen.no)
- In the Agreement, Spain confirmed her intentions of contributing to the decolonisation of Western Sahara, and to transfer the duties as Administrative Power to Morocco and Mauritania. (regjeringen.no)
- It is located on the western side of the territory and was once an important stopover point for caravans traveling between Morocco and Mauritania. (petwithsupplies.com)
Kingdom of Moro2
- NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim that, the United States recognizes that the entire Western Sahara territory is part of the Kingdom of Morocco. (archives.gov)
- This unique experience is being targeted today by a new kind of threats represented by organised crime gangs and terrorist groups that receive support and funding from drugs coming from the Kingdom of Morocco, the largest producer and exporter of cannabis in the world and the greatest threat to peace and stability in the region. (spsrasd.info)
Resistance3
- What lessons does Sahrawi resistance offer for nonviolent movements around the world? (africavenir.org)
- The occupation today consists of a highly militarized security sector in each city in the Occupied Territories to curb uprisings and civil resistance. (jadaliyya.com)
- [1] Not only has this turned the Western Sahara into a concern for national security, but it also serves to marginalize, disenfranchise, and delegitimize the Sahrawi resistance movement. (jadaliyya.com)
Sovereign2
- Entries in this list include, but are not limited to, those in the ISO 3166-1 standard, which includes sovereign states and dependent territories . (wikipedia.org)
- Not included in the list are individual country claims to parts of the continent of Antarctica or entities such as the European Union [a] that have some degree of sovereignty but do not consider themselves to be sovereign countries or dependent territories. (wikipedia.org)
Friendship1
- A delegation from the European Parliament's Morocco friendship group is visiting Western Sahara on Saturday and Sunday (4 and 5 June) on Rabat's invitation. (euobserver.com)
Trump's1
Facto2
- The map affirms the Sahrawi Republic's claim over the disputed territory of Western Sahara, but also draws Morocco up to the de facto border, which conflicts with both countries' claim over the land. (yahoo.com)
- The Corell Opinion recognises Morocco as the de facto administrative power of Western Sahara. (ipsnews.net)
Sovereignty2
- The escalation is rooted in the dispute over the status of Western Sahara, where Morocco appears to feel that its claim to sovereignty is gaining international support. (ecfr.eu)
- The agreement thus did not transfer sovereignty over the territory, as Spain had no such sovereignty in the first place. (regjeringen.no)
Algiers1
- The president of the High Council of Youth, Mustapha Hidaoui affirmed, Wednesday in Algiers, the support of young Algerians to the just Sahrawi cause. (entv.dz)
Systematic1
- The settler colonial project-turned-military occupation has divided the territories between Moroccans and Sahrawis, which has further manifested itself in both a systematic exclusion of segments of the population as well as cooptation. (jadaliyya.com)
Human rights1
- In an exclusive interview, we speak with prominent Sahrawi human rights activist Sultana Khaya in occupied Western Sahara. (democracynow.org)
State5
- Morocco became the fourth Arab state to announce its intentions to normalize relations with Israel as part of the Abraham Accords, following in the footsteps of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan. (breitbart.com)
- Another breakthrough: Morocco became the fourth Arab state to reach a peace deal with Israel this year. (breitbart.com)
- Further divisions are likely to be exposed when heads of state decide whether to approve the re-admission of Morocco. (sabcnews.com)
- Through its social, educational, religious and cultural policies, among others, the Sahrawi state has become a factor of moderation and stability in the region. (spsrasd.info)
- In line with its international and African Union obligations, and in cooperation with the countries of the region, the Sahrawi State has been working relentlessly to combat terrorism and extremism. (spsrasd.info)
Provinces1
Diplomatic3
- Morocco and Algeria, the dominant countries of the Maghreb, are locked in a diplomatic standoff. (ecfr.eu)
- The worst diplomatic crisis to have hit the administration of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez appeared close to being solved, unless Morocco decides to break the truce. (elpais.com)
- But while Spain's political parties locked horns in public, in private, diplomatic pressure on Morocco was growing, and the result of this began to be seen on Wednesday. (elpais.com)
Support3
- This kind of support makes Morocco less inclined to contribute to finding a solution to the occupation, and makes delaying tactics and attempting to profit from the existing situation more attractive. (wsrw.org)
- So far, 16 African countries, the UAE and Jordan have opened consulates in the region, providing Morocco with crucial international support for its territorial claims. (fairobserver.com)
- Morocco has garnered broad international support for its autonomy proposal, which has been called "serious and credible" by the US and many others. (fairobserver.com)
Organization1
- On the other hand, teh Western Sahara issue brought unparalleled schism and discord when Morocco, one of the founding members of the OAU, withdrew from the organization. (africaworldpressbooks.com)
Occupation2
- But in the territory of Western Sahara, the end of European rule only gave way to a new occupation, this time by Morocco. (africavenir.org)
- Morocco is dedicated to establishing a permanent and stable political authority in the territories, and is achieving this through military occupation. (jadaliyya.com)
Government4
- The airline is government-owned and the main carrier in Morocco. (cpj.org)
- If Morocco can normalize its status in the territory, why not the Russian government in Crimea? (shu.edu)
- Why shouldn't the Turkish government invest heavily in integrating Northern Cyprus, as some in the territory now desire? (shu.edu)
- In this place, the Sahrawi Government founds ARTifariti with the spirit of generating a territory of coexistence where interrelation and communication transcend the artistic fact in itself and where art assumes its public and reflective, political role: a seed for the development of Other cultural activities with creators involved in social problems. (artifariti.org)
International2
- Morocco used the accord to sell goods from occupied territories, which is illegal under international law. (euobserver.com)
- Amnesty International on Wednesday broke news that seven Sahrawi hunger strikers had ended their fast, reportedly after being promised better prison conditions, but the victory is a small one and only helps to illustrate the wider abuses going on behind the scenes in the Western Sahara. (middleeasteye.net)
Ceuta4
- So ran the September 12, 2005 headline of al-Shamal , an Arabic-language Tangier newspaper, describing the forays of masses of in-transit sub-Saharan Africans trying to scale the security fences separating Morocco from the Spanish-ruled enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla. (merip.org)
- Morocco appeared on Thursday to have succumbed to pressure from Spain and the European Union over the migrant crisis in the Spanish North African city of Ceuta . (elpais.com)
- A total of 5,600 migrants, many of them residents of areas neighboring Ceuta, had already returned to Morocco by Thursday. (elpais.com)
- It was not until Monday afternoon that news reached the prime minister that more than 1,000 migrants had crossed into Ceuta from Morocco. (elpais.com)
Dispute2
- The jersey dispute has been favorably resolved to underline "the pivotal role Morocco plays in the region in defending the intangible cultural heritage in the face of cultural appropriation attempts," he said. (wtrf.com)
- Amid an ongoing dispute on the EU-Morocco trade agreement, the Danish parliament on Thursday (2 June) voted unanimously to warn Danish companies and municipalities from trading with Western Sahara. (euobserver.com)