Algerian Party Calls for Sahara Referendum, Boosting Maghreb Unity

The word Polisario is seen on the ground in Tifariti, Western Sahara. (Reuters)
The word Polisario is seen on the ground in Tifariti, Western Sahara. (Reuters)
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Algerian Party Calls for Sahara Referendum, Boosting Maghreb Unity

The word Polisario is seen on the ground in Tifariti, Western Sahara. (Reuters)
The word Polisario is seen on the ground in Tifariti, Western Sahara. (Reuters)

Algeria's Movement of Society for Peace opposition party said a self-determination referendum is the only way to resolve the crisis in the Sahara region, calling for boosting Maghreb unity.

The party held a meeting to discuss the situation in Guerguerat, the buffer zone in the Western Sahara.

The free choice of the Sahrawi people ensures the permanent stability of the entire region, it added, warning that imposing a fait accompli always leads to conflict.

It called for cooperation between all parties in line with international law, to calm the situation in Guerguerat and protect civilians. The region must be safeguarded from security threats that “only serve the colonial powers.”

The Arab Maghreb Union project is the framework that brings together the interests of the Maghreb countries and their peoples at various economic, social, cultural and political levels, said the party, adding. The Union can help resolve the Sahara crisis.

The party also called for the opening of borders and allowing the free movement of goods and people, stressing that citizens of the Maghreb countries are united as “one people” and no issue can undermine the ties between them.

On Friday, the Algerian foreign ministry called for the “immediate cessation” of military operations, deeply deploring the serious violations of the ceasefire in Guerguerat the repercussions of which "would affect the stability of the entire region”

Algeria said it expects the UN Secretary-General and the United Nations mission for the referendum in Western Sahara to carry out their tasks without restrictions or obstacles, and show the impartiality required by the current developments.

Meanwhile, Ambassador of the Polisario Front in Algeria, Abdelkader Taleb Omar, announced that the group “has waited long enough and it now realizes that armed action alone is needed to move the standing waters and rectify the course.”

He said that military action in Guerguerat will introduce a “new dynamic” for the Sahrawi people.



Lebanese Army Says Israeli Drone Targets Military Bulldozer at Army Base

Destroyed buildings in an area of the village of Odaisseh in southern Lebanon, located next to the Israeli-Lebanese border, as seen from northern Israel, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)
Destroyed buildings in an area of the village of Odaisseh in southern Lebanon, located next to the Israeli-Lebanese border, as seen from northern Israel, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)
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Lebanese Army Says Israeli Drone Targets Military Bulldozer at Army Base

Destroyed buildings in an area of the village of Odaisseh in southern Lebanon, located next to the Israeli-Lebanese border, as seen from northern Israel, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)
Destroyed buildings in an area of the village of Odaisseh in southern Lebanon, located next to the Israeli-Lebanese border, as seen from northern Israel, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP)

An Israeli drone targeted a Lebanese military bulldozer while it was carrying out fortification work inside the Al-Abbara military base near Lebanon's border with Syria, the Lebanese army said on Monday.

One soldier was wounded, it said.

Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah started implementing a ceasefire last Wednesday as part of a US-proposed deal for a 60-day truce to end more than a year of hostilities.

The accord cleared the way for an end to a conflict across the Israeli-Lebanese border that has killed thousands of people since it was ignited by the Gaza war last year.