WESTERN SAHARA: REBELS OF THE DESERT

The Saharawi are a nomadic people that live in the Sahara Desert. Since the mid-seventies they have been in conflict with Morocco over their right to self-determination. It all began in the mid-seventies, when Spain, under the dictatorship of General Franco, decided to cede its last colony, Western Sahara, to Morocco. The war between the Moroccan army and the Polisario Front, the political and military movement of the people of the desert lasted 15 years. The UN succeeded in imposing a ceasefire in 1991, but without coming to a solution that satisfied both sides. From then until now, 160,000 Saharawi have ended up living in refugee camps in Algeria, another 87,000 are living in areas controlled by Morocco, while the most daring have joined the desert rebels. Traveling more then 1,500 kilometers across the Sahara, Sotiris Danezis presents the history of the longest conflict in the annals of the UN which still remains unresolved.