Will of Sahrawi people, essential reference for resolution of conflict

Shahid Al Hafid (Refugee Camps), 4 September 2022 (SPS) - The Chief of Staff of the Sahrawi Army, Mohamed El-Ouali Akeik, said Saturday in Shahid El Hafid, Sahrawi refugee camps), that the will of the Sahrawi people "constitutes an essential reference for the resolution of the conflict in Western Sahara".

Speaking after a meeting with the personal envoy of the UN Secretary-General to Western Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, Mr. Akeik said that "the messages of the Sahrawi Army through this meeting are about the need for the United Nations, the Security Council and the international community to engage in the application of international legality and accelerate the search for a just solution to the conflict in Western Sahara, a solution that guarantees the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination.

The Chief of Staff of the Sahrawi Army condemned the indifference to the Sahrawi issue, citing the UN which "has failed to meet its responsibilities for thirty years, which has reflected on the Sahrawi people who pay a heavy price because of the stubbornness of the Moroccan occupier, the lack of seriousness on the part of the Security Council, and credibility of the international community in the implementation of the decisions of international legality for the settlement of the conflict in the last colony in Africa.

"The UN is fully aware of the violations committed in Western Sahara against defenseless Sahrawi civilians. It is also aware of the developments of the ongoing war in the region since November 13, 2020 through MINURSO," he added.

Referring to his meeting with Mr. de Mistura, he affirmed it had allowed "to pass important messages to the UN, including the Security Council, on the denial of the right of the Sahrawi people to freedom and independence, the lack of a real reaction from the international community, as well as the unacceptable treatment reserved to Morocco.

The talks with the personal envoy of the UN Secretary-General to Western Sahara took place in the presence of the commander of the sixth military region, Aba Ali Hamoudi and the central director of the political commissariat of the Sahrawi Liberation Army, Youcef Ahmed Salem.

On the second and final day of his visit, the UN personal envoy will meet, on Sunday, representatives of civil society, and the President of the Republic, Secretary General of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali.