AL-Mustaqilla

Tunisian lawyers and jurists, Majeed Al Barhumi and Mohamed Dergam and journalist, Hisham Allagui, have announced the creation of the Tunisian Support Committee of the Sahrawi people in the capital Tunis. The Commission aims to raise awareness of the Tunisian public opinion about the legitimate struggle of the Saharawi people for freedom and independence, "said a statement of the committee. It also will call for the resolution of the Western Sahara conflict, which hinders the establishment of the Great Maghreb and prolonging the suffering of the Sahrawi refugees in the camps. The statement called for the urgent organization of a referendum in Western Sahara and allowing the Saharawi people's right to self-determination.  (SPS)

President of Republic, Secretary General of the Polisario Front, Mohamed Abdelaziz, stressed that a greater sense of urgency needs to be injected into the United Nations process.  In a message to the International Conference on Western Sahara Women’s Right for Resistance, held in Windhoek, Namibia, 2-4 November 2015, delivered by Mr. Mhamed Khadad, Member of the Polisario Front leadership, President Mohamed Abdelaziz underlined “the conflict cannot be allowed to continue indefinitely. The current UN framework is not working. A greater sense of urgency needs to be injected into the UN process. There is a growing frustration among the Sahrawi in Western Sahara and the refugee camps at the lack of progress towards a process of self-determination”. Below is the full text of the message: “Message from H.E Mohamed Abdelaziz, President of the Sahrawi Republic, and Secretary-General of Polisario Front to the International Conference on Western Sahara Women’s Right for Resistance. Wi...

Muscat, Nov. 2 (BNA): Deliberations of the 9th session of the Islamic Conference for Culture Ministers will begin here on Monday under the auspices of Sayyid Haitham bin Tariq al-Said, Minister of Heritage and Culture in the presence of Dr. Abdulaziz bin Othman al-Tuwaijri, Director General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO), ministers of culture in the Islamic world and heads of their countries' delegations.  The Sultanate's host to the three-day conference comes as part of the program to celebrate Nizwa the Capital of Islamic Culture. It is expected that the Islamic delegations will take part in the opening ceremony of the Cultural Centre in Nizwa, the prominent project among the city's celebrations, according to Oman News Agency (ONA).  The conference carries the theme "Towards Intermediary Developmental Culture for the Advancement of Islamic Societies". The culture ministers of the Islamic world will hold tomorrow a panel...

WSRW has received images of fish being dumped in the desert near the town of Dakhla to hide over-fishing. The pictures were taken two days ago. Published: 22.10 - 2015 19:40Printer version These images were taken in the Mheriz area, located south of the city of Dakhla in occupied Western Sahara. Local sources state that "hundreds of tons" are being discarded "because of unregulated fishing by the Moroccan fleet, which brings more than its cargo, and here are discarding". Though this particular discard incident is being attributed to the Moroccan fishermen trying to hide their over-quota fishing, other fleets are also guilty of this destructive practice. Near the end of 2013, WSRW received footage showing a Belize flagged vessel pumping by-catches back into the ocean - a shocking testimony of how Morocco manages Western Sahara's fish stocks.  The European Union, fishing illegally in occupied Western Sahara through its Fisheries Partnership Agreement with Morocco...

TINDOUF, Algeria – Heavy rains have been pounding much of North Africa and Middle East, bringing destruction in their wake and causing heavy flooding, but the torrential downpours have taken a particularly heavy toll on the vulnerable refugee community in Algeria’s Tindouf province. “I’m just grateful for the safety of my children,” Fatima Omar says as she stands, still in shock, outside of her now destroyed mud-brick house in Smara Refugee Camp in Algeria’s Tindouf province. “The rain started early last week, it was just the usual light rain that we have from time to time,” Omar told Middle East Eye. “But last Thursday evening it suddenly started to get harder, the house started leaking. By three in the morning I started to hear the loud sound of collapsing bricks.” Smara Refugee Camp, is one of several refugee camps in Algeria’s Tindouf province. The province houses more than 165,000 Western Sahrawi refugees, of which 90,000 are under direct UNHCR care. During the Western Sahara War ...

The Italian Cooperation has approved the granting of a voluntary 200,000 Euros in emergency contributions to UNHCR to address the consequences of heavy floods in the Sahrawi refugee camps. According to available estimates, more than 25,000 people were affected by the floods and would find themselves now in a state of grave necessity without shelter or food. The Italian contribution aims to support the operations of UNHCR and other organizations working there, including the Italian NGO CISP, in favor of the population housed in those camps. The nightmare in the Sahrawi refugee camps started a week ago, with heavyrains falling on areas previously affected by floods, forcing residents to leave their shelters to move in makeshift tents on the surrounding hills.

 UN personal envoy for Western Sahara, Christopher Ross, visited the Saharawi refugee camps, which houses and properties were damaged by floods in recent days, reported the Sahrawi news agency (SPS) Sunday. According to the same source, the visit paid the day before to the provinces of Boudjedour, Smara and Aousserd, allowed the UN envoy to inquire about the extent of damage of houses and properties of Sahrawi refugees and the need to send urgent humanitarian aid to protect the refugees against cold and hunger, especially after the breakdown of food stocks, waiting for a political solution to end the suffering of the Sahrawi people. In addition, Ross met with Sahrawi Minister of Interior Hamma Salama, to inquire about the damage of this natural disaster, before meeting Sunday with the Sahrawi delegation to the negotiations which will remind the UN envoy of the requests of the African Union and the Sahrawis to the international community to "set a date for the holding of a self-det...

has received footage of Saharawis protesting in front of digging machines, supposedly owned by the Moroccan state owned phosphate company OCP. The Saharawis claim that Morocco is confiscating their land to allow more foreign investments in the occupied territory. Today's protest took place just south of Western Sahara's capital city El Aaiun. The protesters were mainly elderly Saharawis, whose families are said to have owned the land for a long time. Photos of today's protest are included below.  Sources on the ground say that the Moroccan government is confiscating land that belongs to Saharawis. Morocco would want to increase the number of foreign investors in the part of Western Sahara that it occupies in violation of international law. Offering land up to the potential investors would be a first step in that process. The same sources state that about seven weeks ago, an unknown foreign delegation visited the area that is now being cleared by the digging machines. Some t...

ALGIERS- United Nations Resident Coordinator in Algeria Cristina Amaral urged the international community and humanitarian agencies to step up humanitarian aid for Sahrawi refugees. "I call on all countries to increase contributions to UN humanitarian programme for Sahrawi refugees, because they depend only on international aid and UN humanitarian effort," Amaral told APS on the occasion of the 70th Anniversary of the United Nations. The UN official also expressed "great concern" over the deterioration of humanitarian situation in the Sahrawi territories occupied by Morocco. "We are particularly concerned about the weather forecasts," said Amaral. She also noted the reduction of humanitarian aid provided to UN agencies, like the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (HCR), World Health Organization (WHO), World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). "We seek more international solidarity with Sahrawi refugees in the regi...

The wilaya of Daila, in the Saharawi refugee camps, was hit by heavy rains since Monday, leaving considerable damage. Sources to SPS from Dajla that "heavy floods have destroyed several public buildings and community centers, and have destroyed several homes of refugees, no victims are reported so far." In this respect, the Saharawi Red Crescent (SRC), with the help of various humanitarian agencies operating in the Saharawi refugee camps, had dispatched a team to assess the extent of damage on the ground and take the necessary measures to alleviate the damages.

Dozens of families were left without shelter due to fall Friday to Saturday of heavy rain in Sahrawi refugee camps, causing massive damage at level of the wilayas and institutions.  The rain which continued two days and expected to continue, depending on the weather, have led to the collapse of houses and tents in all wilayas particularly in the Wilaya of Awserd. The rains that continued two days and can continue, depending on weather conditions, led to the collapse of several houses and tents of the Sahrawi refugees in the different provinces and especially the province Aousserd. The Sahrawi refugees have lived in exile in houses made of mud for more than 40 years due to the illegal occupuation of their country Western Sahara by Morocco, it should be recalled. A full assessment of the damage will be made public in the next few hours. (SPS)

The Territory of Western Sahara is affected by thousands of landmines and explosive remnants of war left over from 20 years of conflict between Morocco and the Frente POLISARIO. The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) considers Western Sahara one of the most heavily mined territories in the world,

Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Spain)- At the invitation of MEP Miguel Urbán of Podemos Spanish Party, the Sahrawi citizen Takbar Haddi, mother of the martyr Mohamed Lamin Haidalla, is expected Wednesday to give testimony in a plenary session organized at the European Parliament. The initiative comes after the visit by Ms. Mary Beta, General Secretary of Podemos Council, to the place where the Saharawi citizen is holding an open hunger strike in the Canary Islands. Takbar is expected to hold various open meetings with European parliamentarians from all groups of the Chamber of Deputies. She will also participate in an event about the situation in the Maghreb region, in which the spokesman of the Moroccan House of Representatives is expected to take part. It should be recalled that Ms. Takbar Haddi will continue her open hunger strike in front of the Moroccan consulate in Las Palmas, Canary Islands, to request the recovery of the body of her son, Mohamed Lamin Haidalla, and to condemn his assa...

ABUJA — President Goodluck Jonathan has again called on the global community and Nigerians to support the incoming government of President-elect Muhammadu Buhari. He spoke at the Presidential Villa while receiving members of the African Ambassadors Group, who were on a farewell and solidarity visit to him. According to President Jonathan, the incoming government will need the cooperation and commitment of the global community and Nigerians to effectively deliver on its promises to the people. PRESIDENT GOODLUCK JONATHAN ARRIVING KOTOKA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ACCRA, FOR THE 47TH ORDINARY SESSION OF THE ECOWAS AUTHORITY OF HEADS OF STATE AND GOVERNMENT IN ACCRA, GHANA ON TUESDAY (19/5/15). He noted:“The President-elect is not new to governance in Africa so I want you to show the same commitment to him as you have shown to me. The President-elect knows that our commitment is always to project Africa. I am urging you to extend the same warmth and solidarity you have shown to me to him.” Pre...

Tanzania - The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) participated in the work of a seminar for African dialogue on human rights mechanisms and justice, organized by the African Institute of International Law in collaboration with the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights in the city of Arusha, Tanzania. The meeting discussed a wide range of topics such as; African human rights, mechanisms of the continental system, and the interactions between African and international and regional justice. Speaking during the opening session, Mr. Abba Haisan, secretary general of the Saharawi Jurists Union, informed the participants about the special situation experienced by the Saharawi people under Moroccan occupation, highlighting efforts undertaken by the Saharawi state in the field of constitutional construction and the promotion of human rights. Abba Haisan recalled that Morocco continue its illegal occupation of Western Sahara and its looting of Saharawi natural resources, in a flagrant ...

Abuja - The Saharawi Ambassador in Nigeria, Mr. Oubbi Bachir, on Wednesday led a delegation of African ambassadors as part of a courtesy visit to the outgoing President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, H.E. Mr. Goodluck Jonathan. Speaking on behalf of 42 African ambassadors, Mr. Oubbi Bachir applauded the excellent cooperation and coordination shown by President Goodluck Jonathan and his government in the recent years, praising his constant keenness to make Africa at the heart of Nigeria’s foreign policy. In his address on the occasion, the Saharawi diplomat welcomed the initiative of President Goodluck to spare the blood of the people of Niger when he congratulated the president-elect and called Nigerien citizens to accept the election results. “Nigeria, which was the biggest populated country in the continent, has since last year became the first economic power in Africa. After the last free and transparent electoral process, it has now become a democratic model worthy of being em...

NIAMEY (Niger)- The countries of the Sahel G5 committed, at the end of a regional meeting on Thursday evening in Niamey, to strengthen their cooperation in the fight against terrorism and the traffic of migrants to Europe. “Given the interactions between these crimes, only a joint action of our countries is able to meet these challenges,” said the Interior Ministers of the Sahel G5 (Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger and Chad) in a “Declaration of Niamey” that they signed at the end of the meeting. “Another step was made in the establishment of this space in terms of security,” said the Niger Minister of Interior Hassoumi Massaoudou at the end of the meeting. There is “a need to join efforts to provide a lasting response to the security and migration challenges which largely surpasse the capacity of States,” said Najim Elhajd Mohamed, Permanent Secretary of the Group of Five for the Sahel, a body created last year which includes Burkina Faso, Mali Mauritania, Niger and Chad.

Tokyo, May 18, 2015  - Japanese Journalist ITSUKO Hirata has issued a new book on the question of Western Sahara entitled “Last Colony in Africa,” on the occasion of the 20 May, the day of the outbreak of the armed struggle in Western Sahara in 1973 by the Polisario Front. “This book is for the Japanese people to know about Western Sahara,” wrote Journalist ITSUKO Hirata in the preface of the book. "They have no idea that Western Sahara is the last colony in Africa," she added.  The book is constructed in five chapters: Decolonialization in Africa and the last colony, uprising against the colonialization by the Saharawis, U.N. chapter and the international aid for the Saharawi refugees, expedients and cunning maneuvers by Morocco, negotiation table by U.N. In the 4th chapter, the writer put 5 messages by Former Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, Senator Satsuki Eda, Senator Mizuho Fukushima, MP Ryo Kasai and MP Mito Kakizawa, and a short message of H.E. Christopher Ross. In the 5...

El Aaiun (occupied territories)- Mauritanian artist Garmi Mint Abba was recently expelled from the city of occupied Laayoune by the Moroccan security services, for her support to the Sahrawi cause according to Mauritanian information websites. Garmi, who militates under the banner of the Polisario Front “is known for her songs supporting the Polisario front and its hostile positions in Morocco.

Gran Canaria, 17/05/15 - Sahrawi mother Tekbar Heddi has continued her hunger strike for a third day in front of the Moroccan consulate to demand revealing the circumstances surrounding the assassination of her son Mohamed Lamine Haidala, 21, was recently stabbed to death by Moroccan settlers in the occupied city of El Aaiun. The Sahrawi mother started Friday unlimited hunger strike to demand justice for the death of her son. She also called for an autopsy to be conducted. The solidarity movement and the Saharawi community in Spain have expressed full support and solidarity with the Saharawi mother.