Vol. 74/No. 44 November 22, 2010
For 35 years Morocco has occupied the Sahrawi nation in Western Sahara—with the backing of the U.S., Spanish, and French governments. Washington has been the leading arms supplier and military adviser to the Moroccan monarchy. The Moroccan occupation stands in violation of UN resolutions and a decision by the International Court of Justice.
In mid-October, Sahrawi independence fighters set up the huge Gdim Izik tent camp six miles from the city of El Aaiún to protest poor living conditions. El Aaiún is the main city in Western Sahara.
Following the raid and destruction of the camp, fighting spread to the city with several buildings set on fire. Demonstrators took to the streets waving flags of the Polisario Front, the organization leading the fight for independence in Western Sahara.
It was one of the biggest anti-government protests in decades.
Mohamed Guelmous, the Moroccan governor of El Aaiún, said that government forces were attacked as they were going to the camp to arrest "troublemakers."
Further slandering the independence fighters, the interior ministry said the 163 people who were arrested were "opportunists, some with criminal records, trying to take political advantage of the protest over living conditions in El Aaiún."
The Polisario Front was founded in 1973 to struggle against Spanish rule. In 1975 Madrid divided the mineral-rich colony between the African nations of Morocco and Mauritania. In 1979 Polisario forces defeated the Mauritanian army, but Moroccan troops moved in to occupy more of the country.
The Polisario Front has been able to liberate about 20 percent of Western Sahara. The majority of the Sahrawi population—200,000—are forced to live in refugee camps in southwest Algeria and other locations.
In the aftermath of the raid and protests, schools and offices were closed in El Aaiún.
The next day Moroccan police and military patrolled the streets. Most residents stayed indoors, reported AP.
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