Following Smara attack, U.S. Embassy in Algeria says status quo «can’t continue»

The United States Embassy in Algeria has shared a statement from the United States Mission to the United Nations condemning the recent attack by the Polisario on the city of Smara.

The embassy added its voice to the statement, declaring «Western Sahara: the status quo serves no one’s interest and cannot continue»

الوضع الراهن بالصحراء الغربية لايخدم مصالح أي احد و لايمكن أن يستمر.

Western Sahara: the status quo serves no one’s interest and cannot continue https://t.co/9RU7JfYFlT

— US Embassy Algiers (@USEmbAlgiers) May 8, 2026

The statement from the United States Mission to the United Nations specifically condemned the May 5 attacks by the Polisario Front, which left a woman injured but caused no material damage.

The mission stressed that «such violence threatens regional stability and undermines progress towards peace,» urging that «it is time to resolve this 50-year-old conflict.»

Following the United States' lead, France's Mission to the United Nations also condemned the attack, labeling it a threat to ongoing negotiations between the parties involved. The Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, also voiced concern over the attack.