A crucial question emerges with undeniable legitimacy: how could a sovereign and responsible state like Morocco be expected to negotiate with a terrorist organization such as the Polisario, a militia artificially created in the 1970s by Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, later manipulated by Algeria’s junta, and now infiltrated by Iranian networks?
A Political Imposture Fabricated by Algiers
The Polisario Front, which claims to be the “representative of the Sahrawi people,” is nothing more than a political sham. Its supposed legitimacy is neither rooted in elections nor in facts. In the Tindouf camps, located on Algerian territory, it enforces dictatorial authority without elections, transparency, or respect for fundamental rights.
A significant portion of the populations held in these camps do not even originate from Morocco’s Sahara. Many are from southern Algeria or sub-Saharan Africa, kept in near-servile conditions. For decades, testimonies of abuses, repression, and discrimination have accumulated, while Algiers continues to orchestrate this masquerade.
Algeria’s Military Regime – the Official Sponsor of Regional Terrorism
The reality is clear: the Polisario would not exist without Algeria’s military, financial, and diplomatic support. The junta in Algiers, led by General Saïd Chengriha and his figurehead president Abdelmadjid Tebboune, has exploited this conflict for over 45 years to justify its political survival and distract its people, who are deprived of freedoms and prospects.
While refusing to acknowledge its role as a direct party to the dispute, Algeria arms and funds the Polisario, obstructs every political solution, and opposes Morocco’s territorial integrity. In truth, it is Algeria that fuels instability across the Maghreb and the Sahel.
Proven Links to Terrorism in the Sahel and Iran
Since 2012, several reports from NGOs and international institutions have highlighted the Polisario’s links with terrorist groups operating in the Sahel: recruiting idle youth, arms trafficking, and complicity in smuggling routes – all of which firmly place this movement within the broader network of regional militias.
Even more concerning is Iran’s growing involvement through Hezbollah, which is reported to have provided military training and sophisticated equipment to Polisario militias. This collusion has brought the Sahara conflict into a new dimension, where Iranian revolutionary ideology merges with armed separatism to destabilize the Atlantic façade and directly threaten European security.
Morocco – A Pillar of Stability with International Backing
Against this triptych of instability – Polisario, Algeria, Iran – Morocco stands as a pole of stability and responsibility. Its 2007 autonomy initiative is now recognized by the United Nations, the United States, France, Spain, Israel, and numerous African, Arab, Asian, and Latin American countries as the only serious, credible, and realistic basis for negotiation.
The international momentum confirms this recognition: more than 30 consulates general have opened in Laayoune and Dakhla, marking an irreversible turning point. The debate is no longer about “decolonization” but about consolidating regional development under Moroccan sovereignty.
As a sovereign state, Morocco has no obligation to engage with an illegitimate, terrorist organization controlled from Algiers and Tehran. The only valid negotiation must include Algeria as a direct party and acknowledge Morocco’s full sovereignty over its Sahara.
It is time to denounce without ambiguity this unholy triangle of instability, which threatens not only the Maghreb and Africa but also Europe’s energy, economic, and geopolitical security. Through its vision, stability, and historic legitimacy, Morocco remains the only credible bulwark against terrorism and separatism.
Translated from Abderrazzak Boussaid’s French article – le7tv