Polisario warns Africa Eco Race not to pass through Sahara

The Polisario Front on Sunday called on the organisers of the Africa Eco Race not to allow the rally to pass through the Sahara.

The rally’s organisers announced that the 2022 rally, scheduled for 15-30 October will cross the disputed Western Sahara region.

The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) urged the organisers of the rave not to cross their national territory, according to a statement reported by the Sahara Press Service.

Western Sahara is a former Spanish colony that the United Nations considers a “non-self-governing region”. It is a disputed region which Morocco says is under its sovereignty while the Algerian-backed Polisario Front has called for a referendum for self-determination under the auspices of the United Nations.

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In a statement published by the Sahara Press Service, the Polisario affirmed that the SADR reserves the right to use all legitimate means and to respond firmly to any actions aimed at undermining its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In mid-November 2020, a ceasefire agreement between the Kingdom of Morocco and the Polisario was terminated after the deployment of Moroccan forces in the far south of the disputed region to expel separatists.

The Polisario has since confirmed that  it is “in a state of war for self-defence” and declared that “the entire territories of the SADR are a war zone, including its land, sea and air space.”