Morocco reclaims 40 km of «liberated territories» from Polisario

In a meeting held on January 3 and 4, the Polisario Front convened its international representatives at the Tindouf camps to assess the developments of 2024. Just a week later, dissent emerged from within as a youth member of the Front, critical of Brahim Ghali's leadership, divulged details from the gathering.

Said Zarwal, a Sahrawi based in Sweden, disclosed insights from the intervention of Mohamed Amar, the Polisario representative in New York. Amar reportedly admitted that since November 13, 2020, when the Polisario withdrew from the 1991 ceasefire agreement, the Royal Armed Forces (FAR) have reclaimed «40 km of the liberated territories of the Sahrawi Republic».

This revelation echoes concerns previously voiced by Mohamed Ibrahim Biadillah, a former coordinator of the Polisario's armed militias. In June 2022, Biadillah warned about FAR's expansion in the «liberated territories», suggesting that the area east of the Sand Wall might become a «security belt for Morocco».

Furthermore, Amar acknowledged that the United States has opposed the «creation of an independent state in Western Sahara» since a resolution proposed by the Bush administration in 2008 to the Security Council. He highlighted that the current dynamics within the UN's executive body do not favor the separatist movement, attributing responsibility to France while sparing the United States.