De Mistura’s Visit : The Sahrawi People Determined to Continue Their Struggle
Sidi Mohamed Omar, the Polisario Front representative at the UN and coordinator with MINURSO, announced on Friday that Sahrawi leaders have conveyed to the UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy for Western Sahara, Staffan De Mistura, their unwavering commitment to continue their struggle until they reclaim sovereignty over all their territories.
In a statement to the Algerian Press Service (APS), Sidi Mohamed Omar highlighted the importance of the UN envoy’s visit to the Sahrawi refugee camps on Thursday, which forms part of his discussions with both conflicting parties—the Polisario Front and the Kingdom of Morocco—before his briefing to the Security Council on October 16.
He reaffirmed the legal status of the Sahrawi issue as a matter of decolonization, noting that the leaders of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) emphasized to De Mistura their readiness to collaborate with the UN and the African Union (AU) in pursuing “a lasting and just solution” to the conflict in Western Sahara, grounded in “respect for the principles and objectives of the AU’s Constitutive Act,” as stated by the Sahrawi diplomat.
Notably, Sahrawi President and Secretary-General of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali, met with the UN envoy and his aides on Thursday evening. The meeting was attended by the coordinator with MINURSO, Mohamed Sidi Omar, and Nanna Labat Rachid, advisor to the Presidency responsible for information and Arab affairs.
Earlier, De Mistura conducted a working session at the Chahid El Hafed refugee camps with Sahrawi leaders, including the Minister of State at the Sahrawi Presidency for Diplomatic Affairs, Mohamed Salem Ould Salek, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mohamed Sidati.
The UN Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy also engaged with numerous citizens, elected officials, members of the Sahrawi Parliament, and the SADR Advisory Council. During this visit, De Mistura toured various facilities and institutions associated with the Sahrawi state, including the headquarters of the Sahrawi Red Crescent.
