Outline of Western Sahara
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The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic:
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (; SADR; also romanized with Saharawi; ar, الجمهورية العربية الصحراوية الديمقراطية ' es, República Árabe Saharaui Democrática), also known as Western Sahara, is a ...
(SADR) – partially recognised state that claims sovereignty over the entire territory of
Western Sahara Western Sahara ( '; ; ) is a disputed territory on the northwest coast and in the Maghreb region of North and West Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), while the ...
, is a former
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
colony. The SADR was proclaimed by the
Polisario Front The Polisario Front, Frente Polisario, Frelisario or simply Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of (Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro), (in ar, rtl=yes, الجبهة الشعبية لتحرير الس ...
on February 27, 1976, in
Bir Lehlou Bir Lehlou (also transliterated ''Bir Lahlou'', ''Bir Lehlu'' Arabic: بئر الحلو) is an oasis town in north-eastern Western Sahara, 236 km from Smara, near the Mauritanian border and east of the border wall, in Polisario Front-held terr ...
, Western Sahara. The SADR government controls about 20-25% of the
territory A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, particularly belonging or connected to a country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually either the total area from which a state may extract power resources or a ...
it claims. It calls the territories under its control the Liberated Territories or the Free Zone.
Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
controls and administers the rest of the disputed territory and calls this area its
Southern Provinces The Southern Provinces ( ar, الأقاليم الجنوبية, Al-Aqalim al-Janubiyah, french: Provinces du Sud) or Moroccan Sahara ( ar, الصحراء المغربية, Assahra al-Maghribiya, french: Sahara marocain) are the terms used by th ...
. The
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
and the SADR government considers the Moroccan-controlled territory to be an occupied territory.


General reference

*
Pronunciation Pronunciation is the way in which a word or a language is spoken. This may refer to generally agreed-upon sequences of sounds used in speaking a given word or language in a specific dialect ("correct pronunciation") or simply the way a particular ...
: * Common English country name:
Western Sahara Western Sahara ( '; ; ) is a disputed territory on the northwest coast and in the Maghreb region of North and West Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), while the ...
* Official English country name: The
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (; SADR; also romanized with Saharawi; ar, الجمهورية العربية الصحراوية الديمقراطية ' es, República Árabe Saharaui Democrática), also known as Western Sahara, is a ...
* Common endonyms ** – ** * Official endonym(s): * Adjectival(s): * Demonym(s): *
Etymology Etymology ()The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p. 633 "Etymology /ˌɛtɪˈmɒlədʒi/ the study of the class in words and the way their meanings have changed throughout time". is the study of the history of the Phonological chan ...
: Name of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic *
ISO country codes ISO 3166-1 (''Codes for the representation of names of countries and their subdivisions – Part 1: Country codes'') is a standard defining codes for the names of countries, dependent territories, and special areas of geographical interest. It ...
: See the Outline of Western Sahara *
ISO region codes ISO 3166-2 is part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and defines codes for identifying the principal subdivisions (e.g., provinces or states) of all countries coded in ISO 3166-1. The ...
: See the Outline of Western Sahara *
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
country code top-level domain A country code top-level domain (ccTLD) is an Internet top-level domain generally used or reserved for a country, sovereign state, or dependent territory identified with a country code. All ASCII ccTLD identifiers are two letters long, and all ...
: See the Outline of Western Sahara


Geography of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Geography of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic * Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is: a republic in exile, holding but a small portion of the territory they claim * Location ** Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is situated within the following regions of the world: *** Northern Hemisphere and
Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the te ...
***
Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
****
Sahara Desert , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...
****
North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...
*****
Western Sahara Western Sahara ( '; ; ) is a disputed territory on the northwest coast and in the Maghreb region of North and West Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), while the ...
** Territory claimed:
Western Sahara Western Sahara ( '; ; ) is a disputed territory on the northwest coast and in the Maghreb region of North and West Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), while the ...
** Territory held: Free Zone ** Location of most of the citizens in exile:
Sahrawi refugee camps The Sahrawi refugee camps (also romanized with Saharawi) in Tindouf, Algeria, are a collection of refugee camps set up in the Tindouf Province, Algeria in 1975–76 for Sahrawi refugees fleeing from Moroccan forces, who advanced through Wester ...
(self-managed camps in Tindouf Province,
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
) **
Time zone A time zone is an area which observes a uniform standard time for legal, commercial and social purposes. Time zones tend to follow the boundaries between countries and their subdivisions instead of strictly following longitude, because it ...
:
Coordinated Universal Time Coordinated Universal Time or UTC is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is within about one second of mean solar time (such as UT1) at 0° longitude (at the IERS Reference Meridian as the currently use ...
UTC+00 UTC+00:00 is an identifier for a time offset from UTC of +00:00. In ISO 8601, an example of the associated time would be written as 2019-02-07T23:28:34+00:00. It is also known by the following geographical or historical names: *Greenwich Mean ...
* Atlas of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic


Environment of Western Sahara

Environment of Western Sahara * Climate of Western Sahara * Ecoregions in Western Sahara * Wildlife of Western Sahara ** Fauna of Western Sahara *** Birds of Western Sahara *** Mammals of Western Sahara


Natural geographic features of Western Sahara

Landforms in Western Sahara * Deserts in Western Sahara ** Sahara * Glaciers in Western Sahara: none * World Heritage Sites in Western Sahara: None


Administrative divisions of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Regions of Western Sahara * Free Zone – area that lies between the
Moroccan Wall The Moroccan Western Sahara Wall or Berm is an approximately sand wall or berm running south to north through Western Sahara and the southwestern portion of Morocco. It separates the Moroccan-controlled areas (the Southern Provinces) on the w ...
and the border with Algeria. *
Sahrawi refugee camps The Sahrawi refugee camps (also romanized with Saharawi) in Tindouf, Algeria, are a collection of refugee camps set up in the Tindouf Province, Algeria in 1975–76 for Sahrawi refugees fleeing from Moroccan forces, who advanced through Wester ...
– self-managed camps in Tindouf Province,
Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...
* The SADR claims the rest of Western Sahara, but the portion west of the
Moroccan Wall The Moroccan Western Sahara Wall or Berm is an approximately sand wall or berm running south to north through Western Sahara and the southwestern portion of Morocco. It separates the Moroccan-controlled areas (the Southern Provinces) on the w ...
is
occupied ' (Norwegian: ') is a Norwegian political thriller TV series that premiered on TV2 on 5 October 2015. Based on an original idea by Jo Nesbø, the series is co-created with Karianne Lund and Erik Skjoldbjærg. Season 2 premiered on 10 October ...
by
Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
. * Provinces of Western Sahara ** Districts of Western Sahara


Municipalities of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

* Capital of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic: **
Tifariti Tifariti (Berber: Tifariti, ar, تيفاريتي) is an oasis town located in north-eastern Western Sahara, east of the Moroccan Berm, from Smara and north of the border with Mauritania. It is part of what Polisario Front calls the '' Liberated ...
temporary capital A temporary capital or a provisional capital is a city or town chosen by a government as an interim base of operations due to some difficulty in retaining or establishing control of a different metropolitan area. The most common circumstances leadin ...
and headquarters of the
Polisario Front The Polisario Front, Frente Polisario, Frelisario or simply Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of (Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro), (in ar, rtl=yes, الجبهة الشعبية لتحرير الس ...
**
El Aaiún Laâyoune ( , also , ) or El Aaiún ( , ; Hassaniya Arabic: , romanized: ; ber, ⵍⵄⵢⵓⵏ, Leɛyun; ar, label=Modern Standard Arabic, Literary Arabic, العيون, al-ʿUyūn/el-ʿUyūn, lit=The Spring (hydrology), Springs) is the la ...
(de jure)  – headquarters of Moroccan occupation, but still considered by the SADR to be its true capital * Towns within the Free Zone, administered by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic **
Tifariti Tifariti (Berber: Tifariti, ar, تيفاريتي) is an oasis town located in north-eastern Western Sahara, east of the Moroccan Berm, from Smara and north of the border with Mauritania. It is part of what Polisario Front calls the '' Liberated ...
temporary capital A temporary capital or a provisional capital is a city or town chosen by a government as an interim base of operations due to some difficulty in retaining or establishing control of a different metropolitan area. The most common circumstances leadin ...
and headquarters of the
Polisario Front The Polisario Front, Frente Polisario, Frelisario or simply Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of (Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro), (in ar, rtl=yes, الجبهة الشعبية لتحرير الس ...
**
Bir Lehlou Bir Lehlou (also transliterated ''Bir Lahlou'', ''Bir Lehlu'' Arabic: بئر الحلو) is an oasis town in north-eastern Western Sahara, 236 km from Smara, near the Mauritanian border and east of the border wall, in Polisario Front-held terr ...
former temporary capital ** Meharrize **
Zug , neighboring_municipalities = Cham, Baar, Walchwil, Steinhausen, Unterägeri , twintowns = Fürstenfeld (Austria), Kalesija (Bosnia-Herzegowina) Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; french: Zoug it, Zugo r ...
** Dougaj **
Agounit Agounit (also transliterated Aghouinite, Aghounit, Aghoueinit, Agueinit, Agwenit, Agwanit, Agüenit, Aguanit; Arabic: أغوانيت) is a small town or village in the Río de Oro area of the disputed territory of Western Sahara. It is situated ...
**
Mijek Mijek (also transliterated "Mijik", "Miyek" or "Miyec"; ar, ميجك, links=no) is a small town in the Río de Oro region of Western Sahara. It is located east of the Moroccan Wall, in the Liberated Territories (controlled by the Polisario Fro ...
(Miyek, ) * For the rest of the cities and towns within Western Sahara claimed by the SADR, see
List of cities in Western Sahara The following are cities in Western Sahara, listed by population. Due to an ongoing conflict over the territory, the majority is controlled by Morocco, and the eastern and southern portions are controlled by the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Rep ...


Government and politics of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Politics of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The politics of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic refers to politics of the Polisario Front's proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, a country in North Africa with limited recognition by other states, controlling parts of the Western Sah ...
Politics of Western Sahara The politics of Western Sahara take place in a framework of an area claimed by both the partially recognized Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and Morocco. Occupied by Spain from 1884 to 1975, as Spanish Sahara, the territory has been listed with ...


State

* Polisario * Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el Hamra and Rio de Oro *
Western Sahara Authority The Baker Plan (formally, Peace Plan for Self-Determination of the People of Western Sahara) is a United Nations initiative to grant self-determination to Western Sahara. It was intended to replace the Settlement Plan of 1991, which was furthe ...
*
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (; SADR; also romanized with Saharawi; ar, الجمهورية العربية الصحراوية الديمقراطية ' es, República Árabe Saharaui Democrática), also known as Western Sahara, is a ...
* Capital of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic: **
Tifariti Tifariti (Berber: Tifariti, ar, تيفاريتي) is an oasis town located in north-eastern Western Sahara, east of the Moroccan Berm, from Smara and north of the border with Mauritania. It is part of what Polisario Front calls the '' Liberated ...
– temporary provincial capital **
El Aaiún Laâyoune ( , also , ) or El Aaiún ( , ; Hassaniya Arabic: , romanized: ; ber, ⵍⵄⵢⵓⵏ, Leɛyun; ar, label=Modern Standard Arabic, Literary Arabic, العيون, al-ʿUyūn/el-ʿUyūn, lit=The Spring (hydrology), Springs) is the la ...
– claimed capital of the SADR, occupied by Morocco **
Tindouf Tindouf (Berber: Tinduf, ar, تندوف) is the main town, and a commune in Tindouf Province, Algeria, close to the Mauritanian, Western Saharan and Moroccan borders. The commune has population of around 160,000 but the census and population ...
, Algeria **
Bir Lehlou Bir Lehlou (also transliterated ''Bir Lahlou'', ''Bir Lehlu'' Arabic: بئر الحلو) is an oasis town in north-eastern Western Sahara, 236 km from Smara, near the Mauritanian border and east of the border wall, in Polisario Front-held terr ...
temporary capital A temporary capital or a provisional capital is a city or town chosen by a government as an interim base of operations due to some difficulty in retaining or establishing control of a different metropolitan area. The most common circumstances leadin ...
of the SADR


Elections

*
Elections in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) claims the Western Sahara, a territory largely administered by Morocco since Spain abandoned it in 1975. The sovereignty over Western Sahara is unresolved: the territory is contested by Morocco and Poli ...
** Sahrawi legislative election, 2008 * Political parties in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic *
International recognition of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on 27 February 1976, in Bir Lehlu, Western Sahara. SADR claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony; however, at presen ...
*
Former members of the Polisario Front Since the end of the 1980s, several members of POLISARIO have decided to discontinue their military or political activities for the Polisario Front. Most of them returned from the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria to Morocco, among them a few founde ...


Branches of the government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The politics of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic refers to politics of the Polisario Front's proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, a country in North Africa with limited recognition by other states, controlling parts of the Western Sah ...


Executive branch of the government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

*
Head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
:
President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is the head of state of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), a government in exile based in the Sahrawi refugee camps of Tindouf, Algeria. From the declaration of independence on Febru ...
,
Brahim Ghali Brahim Ghali () ( ar, rtl=yes, إبراهيم غالي, Ibrāhīm Ġālī; es, Brahim Gali; born 16 September 1949) is a Sahrawi politician and military officer that serves as the current president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) ...
*
Head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, ...
:
Prime Minister of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The prime minister of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic is the head of government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), a government in exile based in the Sahrawi refugee camps of Tindouf, Algeria. The post of the prime minister has b ...
, Bucharaya Hamudi Beyun


Legislative branch of the government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

*
Sahrawi National Council The Sahrawi National Council (SNC) or Sahrawi Parliament is the legislature of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. Its structure and competences are guided by the Constitution of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR). The present speaker ...


Judicial branch of the government of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

* Court system of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic


Foreign relations of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Foreign relations of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic *
International recognition of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) was proclaimed by the Polisario Front on 27 February 1976, in Bir Lehlu, Western Sahara. SADR claims sovereignty over the entire territory of Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony; however, at presen ...
** Diplomatic missions in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic ** Diplomatic missions of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic * Relations with Algeria * Relations with Cuba * Relations with East Timor * Relations with Mexico * Relations with Nigeria * Relations with Panama * Relations with South Africa * Relations with Venezuela


International organization membership

* African Union (AU) *
World Federation of Trade Unions The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) is an international federation of trade unions established in 1945. Founded in the immediate aftermath of World War Two, the organization built on the pre-war legacy of the International Federation o ...
(WFTU)


Law and order in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Law of Western Sahara *
Constitution of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic A constitution of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) was first promulgated in 1976, but it has been revised several times since then. The last major redrafting came in 1991, but this version was further changed by the Sahrawi National Cou ...
* Human rights in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic ** LGBT rights in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic *
Human rights in Western Sahara The Government of Morocco sees Western Sahara as its Southern Provinces. The Moroccan government considers the Polisario Front as a separatist movement given the alleged Moroccan origins of some of its leaders. The Polisario Front argues that a ...
* Law enforcement in Western Sahara


Military of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Military of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic * Command ** Commander-in-chief: Secretary General of the
Polisario Front The Polisario Front, Frente Polisario, Frelisario or simply Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of (Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro), (in ar, rtl=yes, الجبهة الشعبية لتحرير الس ...
* Forces ** Army: Sahrawi People's Liberation Army, with 6,000 to 7,000 active troops. ** Navy: none ** Air Force: none


History of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

History of Western Sahara The history of Western Sahara can be traced back to the times of Carthaginian explorer Hanno the Navigator in the 5th century BC. Though few historical records are left from that period, Western Sahara's modern history has its roots linked to som ...
* Hanno the Navigator – Carthaginian explorer c. 500 BC, best known for his naval exploration of the African coast. *
Sanhaja The Sanhaja ( ber, Aẓnag, pl. Iẓnagen, and also Aẓnaj, pl. Iẓnajen; ar, صنهاجة, ''Ṣanhaja'' or زناگة ''Znaga'') were once one of the largest Berber tribal confederations, along with the Zanata and Masmuda confederations. Ma ...
– a nomadic people who were once one of the largest Berber tribal confederations of the Maghreb region. **
Almoravid dynasty The Almoravid dynasty ( ar, المرابطون, translit=Al-Murābiṭūn, lit=those from the ribats) was an imperial Berber Muslim dynasty centered in the territory of present-day Morocco. It established an empire in the 11th century tha ...
– during the 11th century, the Sanhaja tribal confederation allied with the Lamtuna tribe to found the Almoravid dynasty. *
Trans-Saharan trade Trans-Saharan trade requires travel across the Sahara between sub-Saharan Africa and North Africa. While existing from prehistoric times, the peak of trade extended from the 8th century until the early 17th century. The Sahara once had a very d ...
– throughout history, some trade routes crossed this region, particularly to and from the Ghana Empire during the Middle Ages. *
Spanish Sahara Spanish Sahara ( es, Sahara Español; ar, الصحراء الإسبانية, As-Sahrā'a Al-Isbānīyah), officially the Spanish Possessions in the Sahara from 1884 to 1958 then Province of the Sahara between 1958 and 1976, was the name used f ...
– name used for the modern territory of Western Sahara when it was ruled as a colonial territory by Spain between 1884 and 1975. **
Ifni War The Ifni War, sometimes called the Forgotten War in Spain (''la Guerra Olvidada''), was a series of armed incursions into Spanish West Africa by Moroccan insurgents that began in October 1957 and culminated with the abortive siege of Sidi ...
– series of armed incursions into Spanish West Africa by Moroccan insurgents and Sahrawi rebels that began in October 1957 and culminated with the abortive siege of Sidi Ifni. **
Polisario Front The Polisario Front, Frente Polisario, Frelisario or simply Polisario, from the Spanish abbreviation of (Popular Front for the Liberation of Saguia el-Hamra and Río de Oro), (in ar, rtl=yes, الجبهة الشعبية لتحرير الس ...
emerges – formally constituted on May 10, 1973 with the express intention of militarily forcing an end to Spanish colonization. ***
El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed ; 1948 – 9 June 1976) was a Sahrawi nationalist leader, co-founder and second Secretary-General of the Polisario Front. Youth and background El-Ouali was born in 1948 in a Sahrawi nomad encampment somewhere on the ''hammada'' desert plains ...
– first Secretary General of the Polisario Front. **
Green March The Green March was a strategic mass demonstration in November 1975, coordinated by the Moroccan government, to force Spain to hand over the disputed, autonomous semi-metropolitan province of Spanish Sahara to Morocco. At that time, the Span ...
– strategic mass demonstration in November 1975, coordinated by the Moroccan government, to force Spain to hand over the disputed, autonomous semi-metropolitan Spanish Province of Sahara to Morocco. The demonstration of some 350,000 Moroccans advanced several miles into the Western Sahara territory, escorted by near 100,000 Moroccan troops (camouflaged as civilians and uniformed), and meeting very little response by the Sahrawi Polisario Front. **
Madrid Accords The Madrid Accords, formally the Declaration of Principles on Western Sahara, was a treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania setting out six principles which would end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara and arrange a t ...
– treaty between Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania to end the Spanish presence in the territory of Spanish Sahara, which was until the Madrid Accords' inception a Spanish province and former colony. **
Tropas Nómadas The (Nomad Troops) were an auxiliary regiment to the colonial army in Spanish Sahara (today Western Sahara), from the 1930s until the end of the Spanish presence in the territory in 1975. Composed of Sahrawi tribesmen, the Tropas Nómadas were equ ...
– auxiliary regiment to the colonial army in Spanish Sahara composed of Sahrawi tribesmen, equipped with small arms and led by Spanish officers, guarding outposts and sometimes conducting patrols on camelback. Following the Spanish Government's decision to hand over the territory to Morocco and Mauritania towards the end of 1975, numbers of them deserted. Many of the Tropas Nómadas soldiers are believed to have joined Polisario and Spanish-trained fighters formed the core of the Sahrawi People's Liberation Army set up to fight Morocco and Mauritania after the Green March. ** 1975 United Nations visiting mission to Spanish Sahara – United Nations General Assembly in 1975 dispatched a visiting mission to the territory and the surrounding countries, in accordance with its resolution 3292 (December 13, 1974), to assist in the decolonization process. *
Western Sahara conflict The Western Sahara conflict is an ongoing conflict between the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic/ Polisario Front and the Kingdom of Morocco. The conflict originated from an insurgency by the Polisario Front against Spanish colonial forces ...
– ongoing conflict between the Polisario Front of the Sahrawi people and the state of Morocco. The conflict is the continuation of the past insurgency by Polisario against the Spanish colonial forces in 1973-1975 and the subsequent Western Sahara War between the Polisario and Morocco (1975–1991). **
Western Sahara War The Western Sahara War ( ar, حرب الصحراء الغربية, french: Guerre du Sahara occidental, es, Guerra del Sahara Occidental) was an armed struggle between the Sahrawi indigenous Polisario Front and Morocco from 1975 to 1991 (an ...
– armed struggle between the Sahrawi Polisario Front and Morocco between 1975 and 1991, being the most significant phase of the Western Sahara conflict. *** Polisario declaration of independence – took place in 1976, establishing the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. ***
Sahrawi refugee camps The Sahrawi refugee camps (also romanized with Saharawi) in Tindouf, Algeria, are a collection of refugee camps set up in the Tindouf Province, Algeria in 1975–76 for Sahrawi refugees fleeing from Moroccan forces, who advanced through Wester ...
– set up in the Tindouf Province, Algeria in 1975-76 for Sahrawi refugees fleeing from Moroccan forces. With most refugees still living in the camps, the refugee situation is among the most protracted ones worldwide. ***
First Battle of Amgala (1976) The First Battle of Amgala was fought between 27 and 29 January 1976 around the oasis of Amgala, Western Sahara, about west of the border with Algeria. Units from the Algerian Army were attacked by units from the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces ...
– Units from the Algerian Army were attacked by units from the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces on the night of 27 January. Algeria claimed their troops were providing food and medical supplies to refugees at Amgala, while Morocco said the Algerian troops were heavily armed and were aiding Polisario. ***
Settlement Plan The Settlement Plan was an agreement between the ethnically Saharawi Polisario Front and Morocco on the organization of a referendum, which would constitute an expression of self-determination for the people of Western Sahara, leading either to ...
– agreement made in 1991 between the Polisario Front and Morocco on the organization of a referendum, which would constitute an expression of self-determination for the people of Western Sahara, leading either to full independence, or integration with the kingdom of Morocco. It resulted in a cease-fire which remains in effect (more or less) to this day. *** United Nations Security Council Resolution 690 – adopted unanimously on 29 April 1991, established MINURSO (see below) to implement the Settlement Plan (see above). ****
United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara The United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara ( ar, بعثة الأمم المتحدة لتنظيم استفتاء في الصحراء الغربية; french: Mission des Nations Unies pour l'Organisation d'un Référendum au ...
(MINURSO) – UN peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara established in 1991 under United Nations Security Council Resolution 690 as part of the Settlement Plan, which had paved way for a cease-fire in the conflict between Morocco and the Polisario Front (as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic) over the contested territory of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara). ** Independence Intifada – series of disturbances, demonstrations and riots that broke out in May 2005 in the Moroccan-occupied parts of Western Sahara and south of Morocco. ***
Gdeim Izik protest camp The Gdeim Izik protest camp (also spelled Gdayam Izik) was a protest camp in Western Sahara, established on 9 October 2010 and lasting into November that year, with related incidents occurring in the aftermath of its dismantlement on 8 Novembe ...
– protest camp in Western Sahara established by a group of Sahrawis on 9 October 2010 and lasting into November, with related incidents occurring in the aftermath of its dismantlement on 8 November. It has been suggested by Noam Chomsky, that the month-long protest encampment at Gdeim Izik constituted the start of the Arab Spring, traditionally considered to be the
self-immolation The term self-immolation broadly refers to acts of altruistic suicide, otherwise the giving up of one's body in an act of sacrifice. However, it most often refers specifically to autocremation, the act of sacrificing oneself by setting oneself ...
of
Mohamed Bouazizi Tarek el-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi ( ar, طارق الطيب محمد البوعزيزي, Ṭāriq aṭ-Ṭayib Muḥammad al-Būʿazīzī; 29 March 1984 – 4 January 2011) was a street vendor who set himself on fire on 17 December 2010 in Sidi Bou ...
in
Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...
on 17 December 2010. *** 2011 Western Saharan protests – began on 25 February 2011 as a reaction to the failure of police to prevent anti-Sahrawi looting in the city of Dakhla, Western Sahara, and blossomed into protests across the territory. They were related to the Gdeim Izik protest camp in Western Sahara established the previous fall, which had resulted in violence between Sahrawi activists and Moroccan security forces and supporters. *
Former members of the Polisario Front Since the end of the 1980s, several members of POLISARIO have decided to discontinue their military or political activities for the Polisario Front. Most of them returned from the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria to Morocco, among them a few founde ...


Demographics of Western Sahara

Demographics of Western Sahara All data about demographic information regarding Western Sahara is extremely error-prone, regardless of source. Most countries take censuses every ten years, and some every five in order to stay abreast of change and miscounts; the last count was ...


Culture of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Culture of Western Sahara


National symbols

* National symbols of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic **
Coat of arms of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Sahrawi or Saharawi (also transliterated into Spanish as or French as ), is an Arabic term meaning 'from the Sahara', or more specifically the Western Sahara. It can also mean 'from the desert' in general. Sahrawi may also refer to: People *the ...
**
Flag of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The flag of Western Sahara (Arabic: علم الصحراء الغربية, also known as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic) uses a national flag consisting of a black, white and green horizontal tricolor charged with a red star and crescent i ...
** National anthem of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic * Public holidays in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic


Culture

*
Languages of Western Sahara All data about demographic information regarding Western Sahara is extremely error-prone, regardless of source. Most countries take censuses every ten years, and some every five in order to stay abreast of change and miscounts; the last count was ...
* National symbols of Western Sahara ** Coat of arms of Western Sahara **
Flag of Western Sahara The flag of Western Sahara (Arabic: علم الصحراء الغربية, also known as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic) uses a national flag consisting of a black, white and green horizontal tricolor charged with a red star and crescent i ...
** National anthem of Western Sahara * Public holidays in Western Sahara * Religion in Western Sahara ** Christianity in Western Sahara ** Hinduism in Western Sahara ** Islam in Western Sahara ** Sikhism in Western Sahara * World Heritage Sites in Western Sahara: None


Art in Western Sahara

* Music of Western Sahara ** Sahrauis: The Music of the Western Sahara * Television in Western Sahara


People of Western Sahara


Persons and personalities

*
Djema'a The term Djema'a (or Djemaa, meaning "Congregation" or "Gathering" in Arabic) can refer to two things in a Western Sahara context. Djema'a: tribal leadership The Djema'a was the leading body in a Sahrawi tribe, composed of elders and elected le ...
*
El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed ; 1948 – 9 June 1976) was a Sahrawi nationalist leader, co-founder and second Secretary-General of the Polisario Front. Youth and background El-Ouali was born in 1948 in a Sahrawi nomad encampment somewhere on the ''hammada'' desert plains ...
*
James Baker James Addison Baker III (born April 28, 1930) is an American attorney, diplomat and statesman. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 10th White House Chief of Staff and 67th United States Secretary of the Treasury under President ...
* Ma El Ainin *
Marrack Goulding Sir Marrack Goulding KCMG (2 September 19369 July 2010) was a British diplomat who served more than eleven years as Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. Early life Born in Plymouth in Devon, England, to Sir Irvine Goulding, a Hig ...
*
Mohammed VI of Morocco Mohammed VI ( ar, محمد السادس; born 21 August 1963) is the King of Morocco. He belongs to the 'Alawi dynasty and acceded to the throne on 23 July 1999, upon the death of his father, King Hassan II. Upon ascending to the throne, Moh ...
*
Mohamed Abdelaziz Mohamed Abdelaziz can refer to a number of people: * Mohamed Abdelaziz (Sahrawi politician) (1946–2016), President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (1976–2016) *Mohamed Abdelaziz (Libyan politician) Mohamed Abdelaziz is a Libyan polit ...
*
Javier Pérez de Cuéllar Javier Felipe Ricardo Pérez de Cuéllar de la Guerra (; ; 19 January 1920 – 4 March 2020) was a Peruvian diplomat and politician who served as the fifth Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1982 to 1991. He later served as Prime Mini ...


Sports in Western Sahara

Sports in Western Sahara * Football in Western Sahara ** Sahrawi Football Federation ** Sahrawi national football team ** Sahrawi Republic Cup


Economy and infrastructure of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Economy of Western Sahara * Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007): *
Currency A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general ...
of Western Sahara: Dirham (Imposed in The Occupied Territories under duress and illegal military occupation) ** ISO 4217: MAD *In Free Zone and Refugee Camps: Peseta Saharaui (''de iure'') ** ISO 4217: EHP ** (''de facto'')
Euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...
, ''Franco'',
Dólar Dólar is a municipality in the province of Granada, Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyon ...
, Uguiya, Dinar * Health in Western Sahara *
Transport in Western Sahara Transport in Western Sahara is very limited by sea, road and air with camels being the primary means of transport in the desert area. Road transport by buses remain the major mode of transportation. The longest conveyor belt in the world is long, f ...
** Airports in Western Sahara ** Rail transport in Western Sahara ** Roads in Western Sahara


Communications of SADR

Communications in Western Sahara *
Sahara Press Service Sahara Press Service (SPS) is the multi-lingual official press agency of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, the government in exile of the Western Sahara. The agency mainly report government-related news and current Sahrawi affairs, both from ...
* Internet in Western Sahara **
.eh Western Sahara is a disputed territory, and as such it has no country code top-level domain ( ccTLD). .eh is reserved for this purpose, and will be assigned if the Western Sahara conflict results in an agreement between the Sahrawi Arab Democrat ...


Education in the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic

Education in Western Sahara * Zawiya * Universities in Western Sahara ** University of Tifariti


See also

*
List of international rankings This is a list of international rankings. By category Agriculture * List of largest producing countries of agricultural commodities *List of countries by apple production * List of countries by apricot production * List of countries by artichoke ...
* Outline of Africa *
Outline of geography The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to geography: Geography – study of earth and its people. Nature of geography Geography as * an academic discipline – a body of knowledge given to − ...


References


External links

; Official SADR web pages *
Sahara Press Service (SPS)
*
RASD TV
*


SADR Oil & Gas 2005
; Overviews
BBC - Country profile: ''Western Sahara''


* ; News
allAfrica.com - ''Western Sahara'' news headline links

The Yahoo! Sahara Update group
; Special topics

* On the
Baker Plan The Baker Plan (formally, Peace Plan for Self-Determination of the People of Western Sahara) is a United Nations initiative to grant self-determination to Western Sahara. It was intended to replace the Settlement Plan of 1991, which was further ...
debate
Western Sahara Project: archaeology and past environmental change in Western Sahara

Association for a Free and Fair Referendum in Western Sahara (ARSO)
; Maps
Minurso Deployment as of October 2006, Map No. 3691 Rev. 53 United Nations, October 2006 (Colour), Department of Peacekeeping Operations, Cartographic Section
; Others
Association de soutien à un référendum libre et régulier au Sahara Occidental, a multilingual resource



Western Sahara Online (pro-Polisario)--now a search site

Western Sahara Online (pro-Morocco)

Sahara-Update · News from and about Western Sahara
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic The Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (; SADR; also romanized with Saharawi; ar, الجمهورية العربية الصحراوية الديمقراطية ' es, República Árabe Saharaui Democrática), also known as Western Sahara, is a ...
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Western Sahara Western Sahara-related lists