Latest news with #MINURSO
Morocco World
15-05-2025
- Business
- Morocco World
Germany Commits €82 Million Package to UN Missions Including MINURSO
Doha – Germany announced Wednesday the renewal of its financial support to the United Nations Mission for Western Sahara (MINURSO), with a contribution exceeding €82 million. The funding aims to strengthen UN mission capabilities in key areas, including training, equipment, renewable energy, digital transformation, psychological support, and logistics. The financial package will primarily target MINURSO in Morocco's Sahara, considered one of the UN's principal peace missions in the region. It will also support UNIFIL in Lebanon and UNMISS in South Sudan. This announcement came during the UN Ministerial Conference on Peacekeeping, hosted by Germany's Foreign Ministry in Berlin on May 13-14. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and high-ranking officials from over 130 countries attended the gathering. Berlin's renewed financial backing categorically demolishes recent media speculation about MINURSO's possible dissolution. It also signals Berlin's firm resolve to uphold peacekeeping in a region where order is routinely sabotaged by actors bent on chaos and disruption. At the heart of this volatility is the Polisario Front – a separatist militia whose escalating provocations and reckless breach of ceasefire agreements are pushing it toward international designation as a terrorist organization. Its actions not only defy diplomacy but deliberately target Morocco's territorial integrity in a dispute widely regarded as an artificial construct – manufactured during the Cold War to undermine the country's sovereignty. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius also reaffirmed his country's ongoing support for UN peacekeeping missions worldwide during the conference. Currently, nearly 70,000 personnel – drawn from 120 countries – serve across 11 UN peacekeeping missions worldwide, including approximately 55,000 soldiers, 6,000 police officers, and 1,100 civilian experts. Ironically, this European commitment arrives as the Trump administration reportedly contemplates slashing UN peacekeeping budgets, despite Washington's position as the dominant financial contributor at 27% of the total $5.6 billion funding. Not everyone views MINURSO's continued operation favorably, however. On April 9, the Atlantic Council published a scathing analysis of the mission's effectiveness. Senior fellow Sarah Zaaimi condemned MINURSO's current role as merely perpetuating a 'state of paralysis' in the region while lacking any meaningful mandate. Read also: 'Good Basis for Western Sahara': Germany Renews Support for Autonomy Plan Zaaimi exposed how MINURSO personnel stood idly by as 'spectators' during critical security developments, including Morocco's strategic reclamation of the vital Guerguerat crossing in November 2020. She simultaneously pinpointed the growing international consensus supporting Morocco's position, with formal backing from the US, France, and Spain. Even more damning criticism came from Michael Rubin of the American Enterprise Institute, who on March 19 demanded the Trump administration terminate what he branded 'failed UN peacekeeping operations.' In his Washington Examiner piece, Rubin eviscerated MINURSO as a 34-year, billion-dollar debacle that has failed to complete even basic census responsibilities. Rubin's harsh assessment didn't stop there. He lambasted Polisario's tyrannical practices, accusing the militant separatist group of brutally 'holding wives and children as hostages' to prevent refugee resettlement in Morocco. He further ridiculed MINURSO officials, claiming the surest way to locate them in Western Sahara is to visit 'Laayoune or Dakhla's bars, where MINURSO vehicles are ever-present.' The sharp contrast between Germany's robust financial endorsement and the searing critiques of MINURSO underscores the uneasy paradox at the heart of the mission's role. While European funding breathes life into its operations, fundamental doubts linger over its capacity to meaningfully address a decades-old, politically engineered standoff in Western Sahara. Tags: GermanyMINURSOMinurso in Western Sahara
Ya Biladi
03-05-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Sahara : The UN remains silent on Polisario's shots targeting MINURSO
The United Nations has remained silent in response to gunfire from Polisario militia targeting MINURSO patrols in the region east of the Sand Wall. This issue was raised during a press briefing by the UN Secretary-General's spokesperson last night. When asked about the incidents, Stéphane Dujarric chose not to confirm them, opting instead to delay his response. «I will have to look. I'll get back to you.», he said. In March 2023, the UN also remained silent when the Polisario blocked a logistical convoy of peacekeepers from Morocco, which was en route to supply MINURSO's bases east of the Sand Wall, which was erected by the Royal Armed Forces (FAR). The gunfire and the obstacles posed by the Polisario's militias to MINURSO's movements were discussed during a meeting on April 29 in New York between the Polisario's coordinator with MINURSO and Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs and Peacebuilding. «During this exchange, the UN official asked the Front's representative for explanations regarding the gunfire that targeted MINURSO patrols twice in April, as well as the blockade of a logistical convoy of peacekeepers», a Moroccan source close to the matter told Yabiladi.
Ya Biladi
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Algeria's President Tebboune meets Polisario leader Brahim Ghali
Estimated read time: 1' Yesterday in Algiers, President Abdelmadjid Tebboune met with Polisario leader Brahim Ghali. «During this meeting, the two leaders discussed relations between their two countries», the Algerian presidency said in a statement. The Polisario's news agency, SPS, echoed the communiqué, accompanied by a few photos from the welcoming ceremony. Mr. President of the Republic @TebbouneAmadjid received today the President of the #RASD, Mr. #Brahim_Ghali. #Algeria #WesternSahara — Algerian Embassy in France سفارة الجزائر بفرنسا (@ambalgerieparis) April 30, 2025 This unannounced visit comes shortly after a meeting in New York between the Polisario's coordinator with MINURSO and Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. «During this exchange, the UN official asked the Polisario representative to explain recent incidents involving gunfire targeting MINURSO patrols on two occasions and the blocking of a logistical convoy for peacekeepers», a Moroccan source close to the matter told Yabiladi. These incidents occurred in April in the area east of the Sand Wall. «The UN is addressing these incidents not only with the Polisario but also with Algeria. It's in this context that the meeting between Abdelmadjid Tebboune and Brahim Ghali took place», the same source added. The last meeting between the two men was held on April 17, 2024, in Algiers, ahead of a UN Security Council session focused on the Western Sahara issue. Notably, yesterday's meeting took place without the presence of General Saïd Chengriha. The Algerian army chief—widely considered one of the country's most powerful figures—had typically attended such meetings with the Polisario leader.
Ya Biladi
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Polisario militias block MINURSO convoy
Just as in March 2023, armed Polisario militias have once again blocked a MINURSO logistical convoy. «The incident occurred on Monday, April 21, east of the Sand Wall, in the Agounite area near the Mauritanian border, about 900 kilometers from the Tindouf camps. Polisario's armed elements entered the area through Mauritanian territory», a Moroccan source familiar with the matter told Yabiladi. This obstruction comes just a week after the April 14 briefing delivered to the UN Security Council by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Western Sahara and head of MINURSO. In his report, Alexander Ivanko noted that «the POLISARIO Front does not appear capable of inflicting significant damage on the FAR [Royal Armed Forces], nor of altering the status quo through military means. However, it continues to reject my calls for a cessation of hostilities. On the other hand, the FAR, equipped with considerable military capabilities, have so far shown restraint». These remarks have angered the Polisario, even as its propaganda media continue to announce attacks against FAR positions to residents of the Tindouf camps. It's worth recalling that in March 2023, Polisario militias also blocked MINURSO's access to its team sites east of the Sand Wall. Following pressure from the United States on Algiers, the Polisario eventually allowed the peacekeepers to pass, a decision communicated in a letter to the UN Secretary-General.
Morocco World
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Morocco World
Think Tank Outlines Growing Support for Morocco's Sahara Position Amid UN-Led Political Deadlock
Rabat – The Atlantic Council, an American Think Tank specializing in international affairs, released a new piece discussing the growing international concern over the Western Sahara dispute. The analysis, published on Wednesday and authored by journalist Sarah Zaaimi, notes how the UN, particularly its peacekeeping mission MINURSO, is losing ground and lacks a meaningful mandate in the region. MINRUSO's spectator mode The analyst stressed that the mission is now only serving to maintain a 'state of paralysis throughout the years,' noting that MINURSO is in no way an 'active peacekeeping mission. 'MINURSO staff remained spectators, even during the rare skirmishes that were reignited along the sand wall, when Morocco decided to retake the strategic Guerguerat crossing in November 2020 to open trade routes with Mauritania,' she wrote. A number of countries sent commendatory messages to Morocco, thanking the North African country's army for reopening the trade route by countering Polisario's hostilities, which were hampering the vital crossing point connecting Morocco with Mauritania. Countries from across the world positively reacted to Morocco's operation to lift the blockade, including Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, the UAE, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. Algeria's blockade of UN process Beyond MINURSO's mandate, perceived as trivializing by many, the piece by Zaaimi also discusses the UN Secretary-General's Envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, and his role in the dispute. Notably, the report highlighted how the envoy has 'felt out of place' since 2022 amid the growing international support Morocco has been receiving for its Sahara position, including the US recognition of Morocco's sovereignty over its southern provinces. The report also recalled France's decision to follow in the US path to recognize Morocco's territorial integrity, in addition to Spain's decision to officially back Morocco's Autonomy Plan as the most credible and serious political solution to the dispute. 'The Italian diplomat himself indicated in October 2024 his intention to step down, alluding to his inability to mediate between a Morocco emboldened by overwhelming international support and an Algeria obstinate in supporting the mirage of Sahrawi self-determination,' the piece reads. This further proves that there is an international consensus, confirming Algeria's direct involvement in the dispute and dismissing its maneuvers aimed at shirking responsibility. Despite being the main sponsor of Polisario's separatist movement against Morocco, Algeria refuses to shoulder its responsibility in the dispute, seeing itself as merely an observer and not a main party to the Sahara conflict. These claims persist despite Algeria's role in harboring the separatist group on Algerian soil and sponsoring its political and military maneuvers internationally against Morocco's sovereignty over the Sahara. The Algerian regime also continues to refuse to engage in the UN-led political process, blocking the roundtable talk initiatives launched by former envoy Horst Kohler. These talks are seen as a genuine mechanism to end the dispute. Zaaimi notably mentioned a faux pas proposal by de Mistura, who suggested a hostile partition of Western Sahara. In October last year, Morocco's Foreign Affairs Nasser Bourita, released a strongly worded statement, demanding clarification and asking de Mistura to identify the pirates behind the revival of the 'already dead proposal,' reiterating Morocco's firm position. 'Just as we rejected the initial proposal from James Baker in 2002, we have not given any attention to what appears to us to be reheated ideas,' Bourita said. Embzzelment of Sahrawis fund Beyond the dispute's political aspect, the piece highlighted the dire conditions that Sahrawis in the Tindouf camps suffer from, including embezzlement of funds and humanitarian aid directed to refugees. 'The diversion of humanitarian aid destined for Sahrawis in the camps in Tidnouf, Algeria, also continues to raise concerns, especially with evidence showing that much of the aid is subjected to corruption and reselling in open markets like Noadhibou in Nouakchott, Mauritania,' the report said. Tindouf Autonomy Support Forum shared the same concerns in a report in 2021, highlighting the severe health crisis in the camps. The report further attributed the crisis of insufficient medical equipment and supplies to smuggling. Another report by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) in 2015 also exposed the well-documented embezzlement of humanitarian aid intended for refugees in the Polisario-run camps . The report covers the 2003-2007 period, showing that separatist group leadership has long been directly involved in selling humanitarian aid provided in the Mauritanian and sub-Saharan markets to buy weapons. Beyond its in-denial approach, Algeria's regime has also been reluctant to allow a census, an appeal that the international community has been demanding to allow tracing and identifying the actual number of the population in the Tindouf camps. The UNHCR estimates that the number of Sahrawis in the camps stands at 90,000. Former Polisario members have long argued that Algeria refuses to allow a census out of fear. Notably, former members Mustafa Salma Ould Sidi Mouloud and Hamada El Bihi have long argued that more than 80% of the population in the Tindouf camps is composed of Tuareg people and individuals from countries across the Sahara Desert, including Mali, Algeria, Libya, Niger, and Chad. Tags: algeria ad polisarioalgeria western sahara
