Moroccan escalation in Alguergarat: Ban Ki-moon "deeply concerned", calls to withdraw all armed elements

Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon stressed that he was "deeply concerned" about the situation in the area of Alguergarat, located southwest of Western Sahara, calling to withdraw all armed elements to prevent any other escalation.

"The Secretary General calls to suspend any action that modifies the status quo and withdraw the armed elements to prevent any other escalation and enable the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) hold discussions on the situation with the two parties," spokesperson of the UN SG said Sunday evening in a press statement.

Ban also underlined "the importance for the two parties to respect their obligations in accordance with the Military Agreement n°1," inked in September 1991 by the Polisario

Front and Morocco under the auspices of the UN pending the completion of the decolonization process in Western Sahara through a self-determination referendum."

The Secretariat General of the Polisario Front, which met Saturday in an extraordinary session chaired by President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) Brahim Ghali on the serious situation in Alguergarat, caused by Morocco's violation of ceasefire agreement in Alguergarat, warned against "the consequences of this aggressive approach of the Moroccan State and its devastating effects on peace, security and stability in the region."