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Military observers withdrawn from UN Mission in Western Sahara: spokesman

Xinhua, March 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

The United Nations has further downsized its mission in Western Sahara by closing a military liaison office at the request of the Moroccan government, Farhan Haq, the deputy UN spokesman told reporters here Tuesday.

Three military observers stationed at the UN Mission in Western Sahara (MINURSO) liaison office in Dakhla were relocated Monday to a site which is in a part of Western Sahara controlled by Morocco, said Haq at a daily news briefing here.

The Moroccan government has requested the downsizing of MINURSO to express its discontent with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon's use of the word "occupation" during a recent visit to the region.

The Moroccan government's support for the UN Mission deteriorated in response to Ban's use of the word in his first visit earlier this month to refugee camps in Algeria for the Sahrawis, as the region's native inhabitants are known.

"Morocco's request to close the Liaison Office in Dakhla is the first request directly targeting the military component," said Haq. While more than 200 military observers have so far been allowed to remain, 73 international civilian personnel were withdrawn from the region over the weekend.

A note to correspondents issued by the UN Spokesperson's Office said that the secretary-general's use of the word came after he "personally witnessed a desperate situation in a Western Sahara refugee camp resulting from decades of life without hope in the harshest conditions."

"He referred to 'occupation' as related to the inability of Sahrawi refugees to return home under conditions that include satisfactory governance arrangements under which all Sahrawis can freely express their desires," the note said.

On Monday, Haq expressed concern that the Moroccan government's position was inconsistent with its commitment to respect the mandate of the UN Security Council which established the MINURSO mission in 1991.

The territory of Western Sahara has been contested by Morocco, Mauritania and the Frente POLISARIO, supported by Algeria, since colonial power Spain withdrew in 1976. Endit