Western Sahara War
Encyclopedia
The Western Sahara War was an armed conflict primarily between the Polisario Front
and Morocco
, the conflict erupted after the withdrawal of Spain
from the Spanish Sahara
in accordance with the Madrid Accords
by which it gave administrative control of the territory to Morocco
and Mauritania
. The Polisario Front
, backed by Algeria
and Libya
and desiring to establish an independent state in the territory, successively fought Mauritania
and Morocco
. In 1979, Mauritania
withdrew from the conflict and a cease-fire agreement was reached with Morocco
in 1991. Today most of the territory is under Moroccan control.
over the coast from Cape Bojador
to Cap Blanc
. Later, the Spanish extended their area of control. In 1958 Spain joined the previously separate districts of Saguia el-Hamra
(in the north) and Río de Oro
(in the south) to form the province of Spanish Sahara
.
Raids and rebellions by the indigenous
Saharan
population kept the Spanish forces out of much of the territory for a long time. Ma al-Aynayn the Saharan pro-Moroccan caïd of Tindouf and Smara named by the Moroccan sultan started an uprising against the French
in the 1910s, at a time when France
had expanded its influence and control in North-West Africa, he died in the same year and his son El Hiba
succeded him. French forces defeated him when he tried to conquer Marrakesh, and in retaliation destroyed the holy city of Smara
in 1913. Not until the second destruction of Smara in 1934, by joint Spanish and French forces, did the territory finally become subdued. Another uprising in 1956 - 1958
, initiated by the Moroccan Army of Liberation, led to heavy fighting, but eventually the Spanish forces regained control, again with French aid. However, unrest simmered, and in 1967 the Harakat Tahrir
arose to challenge Spanish rule peacefully. After the events of the Zemla Intifada
in 1970, when Spanish police destroyed the organization and "disappeared" its founder, Muhammad Bassiri
, Sahrawi nationalism again took a militant turn.
began organizing what came to be known as The Embryonic Movement for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Rio de Oro. After attempting in vain to gain backing from several Arab governments, including both Algeria
and Morocco
, but only drawing faint notices of support from Libya
and Mauritania
, the movement eventually relocated to Spanish-controlled Western Sahara to start an armed rebellion.
. On 20 May he led the Khanga raid, Polisario's first armed action, in which a Spanish post manned by a team of Tropas Nomadas
(Sahrawi-staffed auxiliary forces) was overrun and rifle
s seized. Polisario then gradually gained control over large swaths of desert countryside, and its power grew from early 1975 when the Tropas Nomadas
began deserting to the Polisario, bringing weapons and training with them. At this point, Polisario's manpower included perhaps 800 men, but they were backed by a larger network of supporters. A UN visiting mission
headed by Simeon Aké
that was conducted in June 1975 concluded that Sahrawi support for independence (as opposed to Spanish rule or integration with a neighbouring country) amounted to an "overwhelming consensus" and that the Polisario Front was by far the most powerful political force in the country.
started negotiating a handover of power in the summer of 1975, it ceded the administrative control of the territory to Mauritania
and Morocco
after signing the Madrid Accords
in November 14, 1975. After Moroccan pressure through the Green March
of 6 November, Spain entered negotiations that led to the signing of the Madrid Accords
by which it ceded the administrative control of the territory to Mauritania
and Morocco
. However, on 31 October Moroccan troops crossed into the territory from the north-east, advancing towards Mahbes and Farciya
. Upon the Spanish withdrawal, and in application of the Madrid Accords
in 1976, Morocco took over the Saguia El Hamra and the northern two thirds of the territory, while Mauritania took control of the southern third. The Polisario Front proclaimed the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
on 27 February 1976, and waged a guerrilla war against both Morocco and Mauritania. The World Court
at the Hague
had issued its verdict
on the former Spanish colony just weeks before, which each party interpreted as confirming its rights on the disputed territory.
, Tifariti
and Umm Dreiga
.
The Polisario Front retaliated with guerilla attacks, and moved their based to Tindouf
in western Algeria
. For the next two years the movement grew tremendously as Sahrawi refugees flocked to the camps and Algeria and Libya
supplied arms and funding. Within months, it had expanded to thousands of armed fighters. The reorganized army was able to inflict severe damage through guerrilla
-style hit-and-run attacks
against Moroccan forces in Western Sahara
but also raided cities and towns in Morocco
and Mauritania
proper.
, had a weakened army of 3,000 men, which was unable to fend off the attacks. After repeated strikes at the country's principal source of income, the iron
mines of Zouerate, the government was nearly incapacitated by the lack of funds and the ensuing internal disorder. Ethnic unrest in the Mauritanian Armed Forces
also strongly contributed to the ineffectiveness of the army: forcibly conscripted
black Africans from the south of the country resisted getting involved in what they viewed as a northern intra-Arab dispute, and the tribes of northern Mauritania often sympathized with Polisario, fearing possible Moroccan regional ambitions and resenting perceived increasing dependence of the Daddah regime on Moroccan support.
France
intervened after a group of French technicians was taken prisoner during a raid on the Zouerate iron mines, codenaming its involvement Opération Lamantin
. The French Air Force
deployed SEPECAT Jaguar
jets to Mauritania in 1978 under the orders of President Valery Giscard d'Estaing
, which repeatedly bombed Polisario columns headed for Mauritania with napalm
. The Polisario Front launched a raid on the capital Nouakchott
, during which Polisario leader El Ouali was killed, and was replaced by Mohamed Abdelaziz
, with no letup in the pace of attacks. Under continued pressure, the Daddah regime finally fell in 1978 to a coup d'état
led by war-weary military officers, who immediately agreed to a cease fire with the Polisario. A comprehensive peace treaty was signed on August 5, 1979, in which the new government recognized Sahrawi rights to Western Sahara and relinquished its own claims. Mauritania withdrew all its forces and would later proceed to formally recognize the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
, causing a massive rupture in relations with Morocco. King Hassan II of Morocco
immediately claimed the area of Western Sahara evacuated by Mauritania (Tiris al-Gharbiya, roughly corresponding to the southern half of Río de Oro
), which was unilaterally annexed
by Morocco in August 1979. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/country_profiles/2483315.stm
or sand wall (the Moroccan Wall
). The Moroccan army stationed a number of troops roughly the same size as the entire Sahrawi population to defend the wall, enclosing the Southern Provinces
, the economically useful parts of Western Sahara (Bou Craa
, El-Aaiun, Smara
etc.). This stalemated the war, with no side able to achieve decisive gains, but artillery strikes and sniping attacks by the guerrillas continued, and Morocco was economically and politically strained by the war. Morocco faced heavy burdens due to the economic costs of its massive troop deployments along the Wall. To some both economical and military extent aid sent by Saudi Arabia
, France
and by the U.S.A. relieved the situation in Morocco, but matters gradually became unsustainable for all parties involved.
) seem to have failed. The prolonged cease-fire has held without major disturbances, but Polisario has repeatedly threatened to resume fighting if no break-through occurs. Morocco's withdrawal from both the terms of the original Settlement Plan
and the Baker Plan
negotiations in 2003 left the peace-keeping mission without a political agenda: this further increased the risks of renewed war.
of the Spanish Army
struck a land mine as it was patrolling the Spanish Sahara-Morocco border, killing the five soldiers inside.
On 25 June 1975, two reconnaissance planes from the Spanish Air Force
were attacked by Moroccan forces near the Spanish Sahara-Morocco border.
On 17 January 1980, the Spanish SPS Almirante Ferrandiz (D22)
destroyer
was machine-gunned by a Moroccan Mirage
airfighter, 5 miles away the southern coast of Western Sahara. The Spanish destroyer had received a S.O.S.
from a Spanish fishing vessel
that had been previously detained by a Moroccan patrol boat
.
On 24 February 1985, the Polar 3
, a Dornier 228-type research airplane from the Alfred Wegener Institute
was shot down by guerrillas of the Polisario Front over Western Sahara. All three crew members died. Polar 3, together with unharmed Polar 2, was on its way back from Antarctica and had taken off in Dakar
, Senegal
, to reach Arrecife
, Canary Islands
. The German government, which did not recognize Morocco's claim to Western Sahara at the time and remained neutral in the conflict, heavily criticized the incident.
In 1984, Polisario shot down two Moroccan and a Belgian airplane as well.
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...
and Morocco
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...
, the conflict erupted after the withdrawal of Spain
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...
from the 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...
in accordance with the Madrid Accords
Madrid Accords
The Madrid Accords, also called Madrid Agreement or Madrid Pact, was a treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania to end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara, which was until the Madrid Accords' inception a Spanish province and former colony. It was signed in Madrid on...
by which it gave administrative control of the territory to Morocco
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...
and Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
. 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...
, backed by Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
and Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
and desiring to establish an independent state in the territory, successively fought Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
and Morocco
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...
. In 1979, Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
withdrew from the conflict and a cease-fire agreement was reached with Morocco
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...
in 1991. Today most of the territory is under Moroccan control.
Spanish Sahara
In 1884 Spain claimed a protectorateProtectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
over the coast from Cape Bojador
Cape Bojador
Cape Bojador or Cape Boujdour is a headland on the northern coast of Western Sahara, at 26° 07' 37"N, 14° 29' 57"W. , as well as the name of a nearby town with a population of 41,178.It is shown on nautical charts with the original Portuguese name "Cabo Bojador", but is sometimes...
to Cap Blanc
Cap Blanc
Cap Blanc may refer to:* Ras Nouadhibou, a place in Mauritania and the Western Sahara.* Ras al-Abyad, the northernmost point on the African continent near Bizerte.* Cap Blanc , a place in Southwest France....
. Later, the Spanish extended their area of control. In 1958 Spain joined the previously separate districts of Saguia el-Hamra
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....
(in the north) and Río de Oro
Río de Oro
Río de Oro , is, with Saguia el-Hamra, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of Spanish Sahara after 1969; it was originally taken as a Spanish colonial possession in the late 19th century...
(in the south) to form the province of 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...
.
Raids and rebellions by the indigenous
Indigenous peoples of Africa
The indigenous people of Africa are those people of Africa whose way of life, attachment or claims to particular lands, and social and political standing in relation to other more dominant groups have resulted in their substantial marginalisation within modern African states The indigenous people...
Saharan
Saharan
The term Saharan is used in the English language to denote someone or something from the Sahara desert, including:* Sahrawi , referring to the people of the Western Sahara* Saharan languages, a subgroup of the Nilo-Saharan languages...
population kept the Spanish forces out of much of the territory for a long time. Ma al-Aynayn the Saharan pro-Moroccan caïd of Tindouf and Smara named by the Moroccan sultan started an uprising against the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the 1910s, at a time when France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
had expanded its influence and control in North-West Africa, he died in the same year and his son El Hiba
El Hiba
el-Hiba is the modern name of the ancient Egyptian city of Tayu-djayet , an ancient nickname meaning "their walls" in reference to the massive enclosure walls built on the site. In Coptic, it was known as Teudjo, and during the Graeco-Roman Period, it was called Ankyronpolis...
succeded him. French forces defeated him when he tried to conquer Marrakesh, and in retaliation destroyed the holy city of Smara
Smara
Smara, also Semara , is a city in the Moroccan-Administered Western Sahara, with a population estimated at 42,056.-History:The largest city in its province, Smara was founded in the Saguia el-Hamra as an oasis for travellers in 1869. It is the only major city in Western Sahara that was not founded...
in 1913. Not until the second destruction of Smara in 1934, by joint Spanish and French forces, did the territory finally become subdued. Another uprising in 1956 - 1958
Ifni War
The Ifni War, sometimes called the Forgotten War in Spain , was a series of armed incursions into Spanish West Africa by Moroccan insurgents and Sahrawi rebels that began in October 1957 and culminated with the abortive siege of Sidi Ifni.The war, which may be seen as part of the general movement...
, initiated by the Moroccan Army of Liberation, led to heavy fighting, but eventually the Spanish forces regained control, again with French aid. However, unrest simmered, and in 1967 the 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...
arose to challenge Spanish rule peacefully. After the events of the Zemla Intifada
Zemla Intifada
The Zemla Intifada is the name used by the Algerian-backed Polisario movement to refer to disturbances of June 17, 1970, which culminated in a massacre by Spanish forces in the Zemla district of El-Aaiun, Western Sahara .Leaders of the hitherto secret organization Harakat Tahrir, among them its...
in 1970, when Spanish police destroyed the organization and "disappeared" its founder, Muhammad Bassiri
Muhammad Bassiri
Muhammad Sidi Brahim Sidi Embarek Basir was a Sahrawi nationalist leader, disappeared and presumed executed by the Spanish Legion in June 1970.- Biography :Muhammad Bassiri was born to Sahrawi family in Tan-Tan...
, Sahrawi nationalism again took a militant turn.
Conception of the Polisario Front
In 1971 a group of young Sahrawi students in the universities of MoroccoMorocco
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...
began organizing what came to be known as The Embryonic Movement for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Rio de Oro. After attempting in vain to gain backing from several Arab governments, including both Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
and Morocco
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...
, but only drawing faint notices of support from Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
and Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
, the movement eventually relocated to Spanish-controlled Western Sahara to start an armed rebellion.
The beginnings of armed struggle
The Polisario Front was formally constituted on 10 May 1973 in the Mauritanian city of Zouirate, with the express intention of militarily forcing an end to Spanish colonization. Its first Secretary General was El-Ouali Mustapha SayedEl-Ouali Mustapha Sayed
El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed was a Sahrawi nationalist leader, co-founder and second Secretary-General of the Polisario Front, & also the first President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic....
. On 20 May he led the Khanga raid, Polisario's first armed action, in which a Spanish post manned by a team of Tropas Nomadas
Tropas Nómadas
The Tropas Nómadas were an auxiliary regiment to the colonial army in Spanish Sahara , from the 1930s until the end of the Spanish presence in the territory in 1975...
(Sahrawi-staffed auxiliary forces) was overrun and rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
s seized. Polisario then gradually gained control over large swaths of desert countryside, and its power grew from early 1975 when the Tropas Nomadas
Tropas Nómadas
The Tropas Nómadas were an auxiliary regiment to the colonial army in Spanish Sahara , from the 1930s until the end of the Spanish presence in the territory in 1975...
began deserting to the Polisario, bringing weapons and training with them. At this point, Polisario's manpower included perhaps 800 men, but they were backed by a larger network of supporters. A UN visiting mission
United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara
To assist in the decolonization process of the Spanish Sahara , a colony in North Africa, the United Nations General Assembly in 1975 dispatched a visiting mission to the territory and the surrounding countries, in accordance with its resolution 3292 .- Purpose of the visiting mission :The mission...
headed by Simeon Aké
Simeon Aké
Simeon Aké was an Ivorian politician.Simeon Aké studied law in the University of Dakar in Senegal, and gained his certificate in 1957. Aké began his political career as Director of Protocol of State in from 1959–60, when the Ivory Coast gained independence...
that was conducted in June 1975 concluded that Sahrawi support for independence (as opposed to Spanish rule or integration with a neighbouring country) amounted to an "overwhelming consensus" and that the Polisario Front was by far the most powerful political force in the country.
Spanish withdrawal
While SpainSpain
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...
started negotiating a handover of power in the summer of 1975, it ceded the administrative control of the territory to Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
and Morocco
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...
after signing the Madrid Accords
Madrid Accords
The Madrid Accords, also called Madrid Agreement or Madrid Pact, was a treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania to end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara, which was until the Madrid Accords' inception a Spanish province and former colony. It was signed in Madrid on...
in November 14, 1975. After Moroccan pressure through the Green March
Green March
The Green March was a strategic mass demonstration in November 1975, coordinated by the Moroccan government, to force Spain to hand over the disputed, autonomous semi-metropolitan Spanish Province of Sahara to Morocco.-Background:...
of 6 November, Spain entered negotiations that led to the signing of the Madrid Accords
Madrid Accords
The Madrid Accords, also called Madrid Agreement or Madrid Pact, was a treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania to end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara, which was until the Madrid Accords' inception a Spanish province and former colony. It was signed in Madrid on...
by which it ceded the administrative control of the territory to Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
and Morocco
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...
. However, on 31 October Moroccan troops crossed into the territory from the north-east, advancing towards Mahbes and Farciya
Farciya
Farsia is a small settlement in northeastern Western Sahara. It is located 80 kilometres north of Bir Lehlou, close the Moroccan border and within the Moroccan Wall which divides the former territory, on the P42 road between Smara and Tindouf in Algeria.The only notable feature in Farsia is a...
. Upon the Spanish withdrawal, and in application of the Madrid Accords
Madrid Accords
The Madrid Accords, also called Madrid Agreement or Madrid Pact, was a treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania to end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara, which was until the Madrid Accords' inception a Spanish province and former colony. It was signed in Madrid on...
in 1976, Morocco took over the Saguia El Hamra and the northern two thirds of the territory, while Mauritania took control of the southern third. The Polisario Front proclaimed the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is a partially recognised state that claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony. SADR was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on February 27, 1976, in Bir Lehlu, Western Sahara. The SADR government controls about...
on 27 February 1976, and waged a guerrilla war against both Morocco and Mauritania. The World Court
World Court
* any of the international courts located in The Hague:**the International Court of Justice , a UN court that settles disputes between nations...
at the Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
had issued its verdict
International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on Western Sahara
One of the main functions of the International Court of Justice is to provide Advisory Opinions - non-binding legal interpretations admitted by United Nations organs. In the summer of 1975, the court considered two questions regarding the disputed territory of Western Sahara...
on the former Spanish colony just weeks before, which each party interpreted as confirming its rights on the disputed territory.
Moroccan attack
In the fall of 1975, tens of thousands of Sahrawis fled Morocco-controlled cities into the desert, building up improvised refugee camps in AmgalaAmgala
Amgala is an oasis in Western Sahara. It is situated between Tifariti, Smara and Meharrize, close to the east of the Moroccan Wall, in the POLISARIO-held part of Western Sahara.Its population was estimated in 2,000 inhabitants in 1975....
, Tifariti
Tifariti
Tifariti is an oasis town located in POLISARIO-controlled Western Sahara, east of the Moroccan Berm, and 15 km. north the Mauritanian border. It is part of what POLISARIO call the Liberated Territories and Morocco call the Buffer Zone. It has a hospital, a school, a mosque and a museum...
and Umm Dreiga
Umm Dreiga
Umm Dreiga is an oasis town in the Río de Oro area of Western Sahara.It served as a shelter & improvisated refugee camp for Sahrawi refugees in late 1975 and early 1976, after the Moroccan and Mauritanian annexation of Western Sahara . In February 1976, the Moroccan Air Force used napalm and...
.
The Polisario Front retaliated with guerilla attacks, and moved their based to Tindouf
Tindouf
Tindouf is the main town in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Mauritanian and Moroccan borders. The region is considered of strategic significance, and it houses Algerian military bases. Since 1975, it also contains several Sahrawi refugee camps operated by the Polisario Front a guerrilla...
in western Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
. For the next two years the movement grew tremendously as Sahrawi refugees flocked to the camps and Algeria and Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
supplied arms and funding. Within months, it had expanded to thousands of armed fighters. The reorganized army was able to inflict severe damage through guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
-style hit-and-run attacks
Hit-and-run tactics
Hit-and-run tactics is a tactical doctrine where the purpose of the combat involved is not to seize control of territory, but to inflict damage on a target and immediately exit the area to avoid the enemy's defense and/or retaliation.-History:...
against Moroccan forces in 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...
but also raided cities and towns in Morocco
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...
and Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
proper.
Mauritanian and French involvement
Mauritania, under the regime of Ould DaddahMoktar Ould Daddah
Moktar Ould Daddah was the President of Mauritania from 1960, when his country gained its independence from France, to 1978, when he was deposed in a military coup d'etat.- Background :...
, had a weakened army of 3,000 men, which was unable to fend off the attacks. After repeated strikes at the country's principal source of income, the iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
mines of Zouerate, the government was nearly incapacitated by the lack of funds and the ensuing internal disorder. Ethnic unrest in the Mauritanian Armed Forces
Military of Mauritania
The military forces of Mauritania are listed by the IISS Military Balance 2007 as comprising 15,870 personnel with an additional 5,000 paramilitaries....
also strongly contributed to the ineffectiveness of the army: forcibly conscripted
Conscription
Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of people in some sort of national service, most often military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and continues in some countries to the present day under various names...
black Africans from the south of the country resisted getting involved in what they viewed as a northern intra-Arab dispute, and the tribes of northern Mauritania often sympathized with Polisario, fearing possible Moroccan regional ambitions and resenting perceived increasing dependence of the Daddah regime on Moroccan support.
France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
intervened after a group of French technicians was taken prisoner during a raid on the Zouerate iron mines, codenaming its involvement Opération Lamantin
Opération Lamantin
Opération Lamatin was a December 1977 – July 1978 military intervention by France on the behalf of the Mauritanian government, in its war against Sahrawi guerrilla fighters of the Polisario Front, seeking independence for Western Sahara.-Background:...
. The French Air Force
French Air Force
The French Air Force , literally Army of the Air) is the air force of the French Armed Forces. It was formed in 1909 as the Service Aéronautique, a service arm of the French Army, then was made an independent military arm in 1933...
deployed SEPECAT Jaguar
SEPECAT Jaguar
The SEPECAT Jaguar is an Anglo-French jet ground attack aircraft, originally used by the British Royal Air Force and the French Armée de l'Air in the close air support and nuclear strike role, and still in service with several export customers, notably the Indian Air Force and the Royal Air Force...
jets to Mauritania in 1978 under the orders of President Valery Giscard d'Estaing
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing
Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard d'Estaing is a French centre-right politician who was President of the French Republic from 1974 until 1981...
, which repeatedly bombed Polisario columns headed for Mauritania with napalm
Napalm
Napalm is a thickening/gelling agent generally mixed with gasoline or a similar fuel for use in an incendiary device, primarily as an anti-personnel weapon...
. The Polisario Front launched a raid on the capital Nouakchott
Nouakchott
-Government:The town was first divided into districts in 1973. First it was divided into four. From 1986, the city has been split into nine districts.* Arafat* Dar Naim* El Mina* Ksar* Riad* Sebkha* Tevragh-Zeina* Teyarett* Toujounine...
, during which Polisario leader El Ouali was killed, and was replaced by Mohamed Abdelaziz
Mohamed Abdelaziz
Mohamed Abdelaziz is the 3rd and current Secretary General of the Polisario Front and President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic since 1976...
, with no letup in the pace of attacks. Under continued pressure, the Daddah regime finally fell in 1978 to a coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
led by war-weary military officers, who immediately agreed to a cease fire with the Polisario. A comprehensive peace treaty was signed on August 5, 1979, in which the new government recognized Sahrawi rights to Western Sahara and relinquished its own claims. Mauritania withdrew all its forces and would later proceed to formally recognize the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is a partially recognised state that claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony. SADR was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on February 27, 1976, in Bir Lehlu, Western Sahara. The SADR government controls about...
, causing a massive rupture in relations with Morocco. King Hassan II of Morocco
Hassan II of Morocco
King Hassan II l-ḥasan aṯ-ṯānī, dial. el-ḥasan ettâni); July 9, 1929 – July 23, 1999) was King of Morocco from 1961 until his death in 1999...
immediately claimed the area of Western Sahara evacuated by Mauritania (Tiris al-Gharbiya, roughly corresponding to the southern half of Río de Oro
Río de Oro
Río de Oro , is, with Saguia el-Hamra, one of the two territories that formed the Spanish province of Spanish Sahara after 1969; it was originally taken as a Spanish colonial possession in the late 19th century...
), which was unilaterally annexed
Annexation
Annexation is the de jure incorporation of some territory into another geo-political entity . Usually, it is implied that the territory and population being annexed is the smaller, more peripheral, and weaker of the two merging entities, barring physical size...
by Morocco in August 1979. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/country_profiles/2483315.stm
Stalemate
From the mid-1980s Morocco largely managed to keep Polisario troops off by building a huge bermBerm
A berm is a level space, shelf, or raised barrier separating two areas. Berm originates in the Middle Dutch and German berme and came into usage in English via French.- History :...
or sand wall (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...
). The Moroccan army stationed a number of troops roughly the same size as the entire Sahrawi population to defend the wall, enclosing the Southern Provinces
Southern Provinces
The Southern Provinces or Moroccan Sahara are the terms used by Morocco for Western Sahara, in reference to the part of Western Sahara that lies to the west of the Moroccan Berm...
, the economically useful parts of Western Sahara (Bou Craa
Bou Craa
Bou Craa 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...
, El-Aaiun, Smara
Smara
Smara, also Semara , is a city in the Moroccan-Administered Western Sahara, with a population estimated at 42,056.-History:The largest city in its province, Smara was founded in the Saguia el-Hamra as an oasis for travellers in 1869. It is the only major city in Western Sahara that was not founded...
etc.). This stalemated the war, with no side able to achieve decisive gains, but artillery strikes and sniping attacks by the guerrillas continued, and Morocco was economically and politically strained by the war. Morocco faced heavy burdens due to the economic costs of its massive troop deployments along the Wall. To some both economical and military extent aid sent by Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and by the U.S.A. relieved the situation in Morocco, but matters gradually became unsustainable for all parties involved.
Cease-fire and aftermath
A cease-fire between the Polisario and Morocco, monitored by MINURSO (UN) has been in effect since 6 September 1991, with the promise of a referendum on independence the following year. The referendum, however, stalled over disagreements on voter rights, and numerous attempts at restarting the process (most significantly the launching of the 2003 Baker planBaker Plan
The Baker Plan is a United Nations initiative to grant self-determination to Western Sahara...
) seem to have failed. The prolonged cease-fire has held without major disturbances, but Polisario has repeatedly threatened to resume fighting if no break-through occurs. Morocco's withdrawal from both the terms of the original Settlement Plan
Settlement Plan
The Settlement Plan was an agreement between the Polisario Front and Morocco on the organization of a referendum, which would constitute an expression of self-determination for the people of Western Sahara, leading either to full independence, or integration with the kingdom of Morocco...
and the Baker Plan
Baker Plan
The Baker Plan is a United Nations initiative to grant self-determination to Western Sahara...
negotiations in 2003 left the peace-keeping mission without a political agenda: this further increased the risks of renewed war.
International incidents
On 24 June 1975, a Land RoverLand Rover
Land Rover is a British car manufacturer with its headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, United Kingdom which specialises in four-wheel-drive vehicles. It is owned by the Indian company Tata Motors, forming part of their Jaguar Land Rover group...
of the Spanish Army
Spanish Army
The Spanish Army is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest active armies - dating back to the 15th century.-Introduction:...
struck a land mine as it was patrolling the Spanish Sahara-Morocco border, killing the five soldiers inside.
On 25 June 1975, two reconnaissance planes from the Spanish Air Force
Spanish Air Force
-The early stages:Hot air balloons had been used with military purposes in Spain as far back as 1896. In 1905, with the help of Alfredo Kindelán, Leonardo Torres y Quevedo directed the construction of the first Spanish dirigible in the Army Military Aerostatics Service, created in 1896 and located...
were attacked by Moroccan forces near the Spanish Sahara-Morocco border.
On 17 January 1980, the Spanish SPS Almirante Ferrandiz (D22)
USS David W. Taylor (DD-551)
USS David W. Taylor , a Fletcher-class destroyer, was a ship of the United States Navy named for Rear Admiral David W. Taylor ....
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
was machine-gunned by a Moroccan Mirage
Mirage (aircraft)
Mirage is the name of a series of delta-winged fighters and bombers that have been produced by the French aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation, flown by the French Air Force, and widely exported to foreign counties.* Dassault Mirage III...
airfighter, 5 miles away the southern coast of Western Sahara. The Spanish destroyer had received a S.O.S.
SOS
SOS is the commonly used description for the international Morse code distress signal...
from a Spanish fishing vessel
Fishing vessel
A fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Many different kinds of vessels are used in commercial, artisanal and recreational fishing....
that had been previously detained by a Moroccan patrol boat
Patrol boat
A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defense duties.There have been many designs for patrol boats. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, or police force, and may be intended for marine and/or estuarine or river environments...
.
On 24 February 1985, the Polar 3
Polar 3
Polar 3 was a Dornier Do 228 airplane of the Alfred Wegener Institute that was shot down south of Dakhla by guerrillas of the Polisario Front over Western Sahara on 24 February 1985....
, a Dornier 228-type research airplane from the Alfred Wegener Institute
Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research
The Alfred Wegener Institute of Polar and Marine Research is a scientific organization located in Bremerhaven, Germany. The institute was founded in 1980 and is named after revolutionary meteorologist climatologist, and geologist Alfred Wegener...
was shot down by guerrillas of the Polisario Front over Western Sahara. All three crew members died. Polar 3, together with unharmed Polar 2, was on its way back from Antarctica and had taken off in Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
, Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
, to reach Arrecife
Arrecife
Arrecife is a city in the Canary Islands situated in the centre-east of the island of Lanzarote of which it has been the capital since 1852. The city owes its name to the rock reef which covers the beach located in the city...
, Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
. The German government, which did not recognize Morocco's claim to Western Sahara at the time and remained neutral in the conflict, heavily criticized the incident.
In 1984, Polisario shot down two Moroccan and a Belgian airplane as well.
See also
- History of Western SaharaHistory of Western SaharaThe history of Western Sahara can be traced back to the times of Carthaginian explorer Hanno the Navigator in the 5th century BC. Though few historical records are left from that period, Western Sahara's modern history has its roots linked to some nomadic groups such as the Sanhaja group and the...
- Ifni WarIfni WarThe Ifni War, sometimes called the Forgotten War in Spain , was a series of armed incursions into Spanish West Africa by Moroccan insurgents and Sahrawi rebels that began in October 1957 and culminated with the abortive siege of Sidi Ifni.The war, which may be seen as part of the general movement...
- Berm (Western Sahara)
- Operation LamantinOpération LamantinOpération Lamatin was a December 1977 – July 1978 military intervention by France on the behalf of the Mauritanian government, in its war against Sahrawi guerrilla fighters of the Polisario Front, seeking independence for Western Sahara.-Background:...