Bou Craa
Encyclopedia
Bou Craa (Arabic: بوكراع) is a town in the Saguia el-Hamra
region of northern Western Sahara
, south and slightly east of the city of El Aaiún
. It is inhabited almost entirely by employees of the Moroccan
-controlled Bou Craa phosphate
industry. During the Spanish
colonization
of the area (see Spanish Sahara
) time, many early recruits of the nationalist movements Harakat Tahrir
and Front Polisario were Sahrawi workers in the phosphate mines.
The phosphates are transported to the coast by an automated conveyor belt
, the longest such belt in the world. This transportation system was vandalized and disabled several times by the Front Polisario, during the war between the Moroccan Royal Army and the Polisario Front
from 1976. These attacks gradually ceased after the town was enclosed in the early 1980s by the Moroccan Wall
, and the town is presently under Moroccan control.
)
Saguia el-Hamra
Saguia el-Hamra, in Arabic الساقية الحمراء, al-Saqiyah al-Hamra'a , is, with Río de Oro, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of Spanish Sahara after 1969. Its name comes from a waterway that goes through the capital....
region of northern Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
, south and slightly east of the city of El Aaiún
El Aaiún
El-Aaiún , is a city in Western Sahara founded by the Spanish in 1928. Administered by Morocco since 1976, El-Aaiún is the capital of what the Moroccan government call the region of Laâyoune-Boujdour-Sakia El Hamra, and POLISARIO call Occupied Territories...
. It is inhabited almost entirely by employees of the Moroccan
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
-controlled Bou Craa phosphate
Phosphate
A phosphate, an inorganic chemical, is a salt of phosphoric acid. In organic chemistry, a phosphate, or organophosphate, is an ester of phosphoric acid. Organic phosphates are important in biochemistry and biogeochemistry or ecology. Inorganic phosphates are mined to obtain phosphorus for use in...
industry. During the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
colonization
Colonialism
Colonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. It is a process whereby the metropole claims sovereignty over the colony and the social structure, government, and economics of the colony are changed by...
of the area (see Spanish Sahara
Spanish Sahara
Spanish Sahara was the name used for the modern territory of Western Sahara when it was ruled as a territory by Spain between 1884 and 1975...
) time, many early recruits of the nationalist movements Harakat Tahrir
Harakat Tahrir
The Movement for the Liberation of the Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro, sometimes referred to as the Movement for the Liberation of the Sahara or simply the Liberation Movement was created in 1969 by Muhammad Bassiri, a Smara-based Sahrawi quranic teacher, to work for the independence of Western...
and Front Polisario were Sahrawi workers in the phosphate mines.
The phosphates are transported to the coast by an automated conveyor belt
Conveyor belt
A conveyor belt consists of two or more pulleys, with a continuous loop of material - the conveyor belt - that rotates about them. One or both of the pulleys are powered, moving the belt and the material on the belt forward. The powered pulley is called the drive pulley while the unpowered pulley...
, the longest such belt in the world. This transportation system was vandalized and disabled several times by the Front Polisario, during the war between the Moroccan Royal Army and the Polisario Front
Polisario Front
The POLISARIO, Polisario Front, or Frente Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of Frente Popular de Liberación de Saguía el Hamra y Río de Oro is a Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement working for the independence of Western Sahara from Morocco...
from 1976. These attacks gradually ceased after the town was enclosed in the early 1980s by the Moroccan Wall
Moroccan Wall
The Berm of Western Sahara is an approximately 2,700 km-long defensive structure, mostly a sand wall , running through Western Sahara and the southeastern portion of Morocco...
, and the town is presently under Moroccan control.
Satellite images
(Google mapsGoogle Maps
Google Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
)
- Low resolution view of the conveyor belt to the port at Laayoune-Plage. Its location can be seen from the line of windswept sand accumulating on its south-western side.
- The mines and tailings
- the start of the conveyor belt at the mine