Moroccan Western Sahara Wall
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The Moroccan Western Sahara Wall or the Berm, also called the Moroccan sand wall (Template:Langx), is an approximately Template:Convert berm running south to north through Western Sahara and the southwestern portion of Morocco. It separates<ref>Template:Citation</ref> the Moroccan-controlled areas (the Southern Provinces) on the west from the Polisario-controlled areas (Free Zone, nominally Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic) on the east. The main function of the barriers is to exclude guerrilla fighters of the Polisario Front, who have sought Western Saharan independence since before Spain ended its colonial occupation in 1975, from the Moroccan-controlled western part of the territory.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
According to maps from the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO)<ref>Deployment of MINURSO Template:Webarchive</ref> or the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR),<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> in many places the wall extends several kilometers into internationally recognized Mauritanian territory.<ref>MINURSO</ref>
NamesEdit
The wall is also called the Western Sahara berm and the Western Sahara separation barrier.
Physical structureEdit
The fortifications lie in uninhabited or very sparsely inhabited territory. They consist of sand and stone walls or berms about Template:Convert in height, with bunkers, fences, and landmines throughout. The barrier minebelt that runs along the structure is thought to be the longest continuous minefield in the world.<ref name="jma-cp">Template:Cite journal</ref> Military bases, artillery posts and airfields dot the Moroccan-controlled side of the wall at regular intervals, and radar masts and other electronic surveillance equipment scan the areas in front of it.
The following is one observer's description of the berm from 2001: Template:Quotation
In all, six lines of berms have been constructed.<ref name="MinursoTimeline2">Milestones of the conflict Template:Webarchive, page 2. Website of the United Nations MINURSO mission.</ref> The main ("external") line of fortifications extends for about Template:Convert. It runs east from Guerguerat on the coast in the extreme south of Western Sahara near the Mauritanian town of Nouadhibou, closely parallelling the Mauritanian border for about Template:Convert, before turning north beyond Tichla. It then runs generally northeastward, leaving Guelta Zemmur and Smara, again crossing Mauritanian territory and reaching Haouza in Moroccan-held territory, before turning east and again closely following the Algerian border as it approaches Morocco. A section extends about Template:Convert into southeastern Morocco.<ref name="minursoMap">United Nations Map No. 3691 Template:Webarchive Rev. 53 United Nations, October 2006 (Colour), Department of Peacekeeping Operations, Cartographic Section. Depicts the deployment of the MINURSO mission, as well as the wall location.</ref><ref name="inMorocco">See also e.g. this satellite montage at Google Maps Template:Webarchive for a section of the wall in Moroccan territory. The northernmost fort that is clearly distinguishable can be seen here [1] Template:Webarchive. (Google Maps, as of 30 November 2006)</ref>
Significant lines of fortifications also lie deep within the Moroccan-controlled area.<ref name="examplewithin">For example, a sand berm with fortifications much like on the main external line can be seen here [2] Template:Webarchive, reaching the coast near Imlili, over 200 km (125 miles) north of the main external berm along the southern border. (Google Maps, as of 30 November 2006)</ref> Their exact number and location have been ignored and not well understood until 2004 by international commentators.<ref name="cidi">Template:Cite news</ref>
All major settlements in Western Sahara, the capital Laayoune, and the phosphate mine at Bou Craa lie far into the Moroccan-held side.
HistoryEdit
ConstructionEdit
The fortifications were progressively built by Moroccan forces starting in 1980, with help from South African, South Korean, and Israeli advisors, and formally ending on 16 April 1987.<ref name="MinursoTimeline2"/> The wall was built in six stages, and the area behind the wall was expanded from a small area near Morocco in the north to most of the western and central part of the country gradually. The walls built were:
- 1st wall (August 1980 – June 1982) surrounding the "useful triangle" of El Aaiún, Smara, and the phosphate mines at Bou Craa, built with the help of South African military engineers and Portuguese and French renegade mercenaries (c. Template:Convert).
- 2nd wall (December 1983 – January 1984) surrounding Amgala (c. Template:Convert).
- 3rd wall (April 1984 – May 1984) surrounding Jdiriya and Haouza (c. Template:Convert).
- 4th wall (December 1984 – January 1985) surrounding Mahbes and Farciya (c. Template:Convert).
- 5th wall (May–September 1985) surrounding Guelta Zemmur, Bir Anzarane, and Dakhla, again with the help of South African and Israeli experts (c. Template:Convert)
- 6th wall (February–April 1987) surrounding Auserd, Tichla, and Bir Ganduz (c. Template:Convert).
2005 expulsion incidentEdit
In the summer of 2005, the Moroccan Army accelerated the expulsion (begun in late 2004) of illegal immigrants detained in northern Morocco to the eastern side of the wall, into the Free Zone. The Polisario Front and the MINURSO rescued several dozen lost in the desert, who had run out of water. Others died of thirst.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> By October, the Polisario had received 22 immigrants in Mehaires, 46 in Tifariti and 97 in Bir Lehlu. They were from African countries (Gambia, Cameroon, Nigeria, Ghana, etc.), except a group of 48 who were from Bangladesh.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
The Thousand Column demonstrationEdit
Since 2008, a demonstration called "The Thousand Column" is held annually in the desert against the barrier by international human rights activists and Sahrawi refugees. In the 2008 demonstration, more than 2,000 people (most of them Sahrawis and Spaniards, but also Algerians, Italians, and others) made a human chain demanding the demolition of the wall, the celebration of the self-determination referendum accorded by the UN and the parts in 1991, and the end of the Moroccan occupation of the territory.<ref>Una cadena humana de más de 2.000 personas pide el derribo del muro del Sáhara Template:Webarchive El Mundo (EFE), 22 March 2008 Template:In lang</ref>
During the 2009 demonstration, a teenage Sahrawi refugee named Ibrahim Hussein Leibeit lost half of his right leg in a landmine explosion.<ref>Demonstration in Western Sahara against Moroccan Army Wall Template:Webarchive Demotix, 9 April 2009</ref><ref>Ibrahim Hussein Leibeit Template:Webarchive Focus Features, 28 May 2009</ref> The incident happened when Leibeit and dozens of young Sahrawis crossed the line into a minefield while aiming to throw stones to the other side of the wall.<ref>Screenings in The Devil’s Garden: The Sahara Film Festival Template:Webarchive, New Internationalist, Issue 422, 20 May 2009</ref><ref>The Berlin Wall of the Desert Template:Webarchive New Internationalist, Issue 427, 10 November 2009</ref>
EffectEdit
Effectively, after the completion of the wall, Morocco has controlled the bulk of Western Sahara territory that lies to the north and west of it, calling these the kingdom's "Southern Provinces". The Polisario-founded Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic controls the mostly uninhabited "Free Zone", which comprises all areas to the east of the barrier. Units from the United Nations mission MINURSO separate the two sides, and enforce cease-fire regulations.
External reactions and opinionsEdit
Western attention to the wall, and to the Moroccan annexation of Western Sahara in general, has been minimal, apart from Spain. In Africa, the annexation of Western Sahara by Morocco has attracted somewhat more attention. Algeria supports the Polisario Front "in its long-running desert war to oppose Moroccan control of the disputed area".<ref>"Security Problems with Neighboring States" Template:Webarchive, Country Studies/Area Handbook Series, Library of Congress Federal Research Division (retrieved 1 May 2006).</ref><ref>Williams, Ian and Zunes, Stephen, "Self Determination Struggle in the Western Sahara Continues to Challenge the UN" Template:Webarchive, Foreign Policy in Focus Policy Report, September 2003 (retrieved 1 May 2006).</ref> The Organization of African Unity/African Union (AU) and United Nations have proposed negotiated solutions.
The AU's stance on Western Sahara led to Morocco's exit from the organization. After a 33-year absence, Morocco rejoined on 30 January 2017, despite 9 member states voting against, but 39 supporting.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Morocco was re-admitted with the understanding that Western Sahara will remain an AU member.
- The Berm, Western Sahara..jpg
Wall east of Mahbes
- Mahbes.jpeg
Wall south of Mahbes
See alsoEdit
References and notesEdit
External linksEdit
- Map of Western Sahara, with the location of the wall marked Produced by the United Nations, showing the deployment of the MINURSO mission as of January 2014. Map No. 3691 Rev. 72 United Nations, January 2014 (Colour), Department of Peacekeeping Operations, Cartographic Section
- Landmine Monitor, LM Report 2006, Morocco
- Landmine Monitor, LM Report 2006, Western Sahara
- Landmine Monitor, LM Report 2006, Algeria
- Profile – Created by the United Nations MINURSO mission