The UN doesn’t acknowledge Rabat’s declare to the territory and has known as for a referendum to settle the matter
Israel has acknowledged Moroccan sovereignty over the disputed territory of Western Sahara, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s workplace introduced on Monday. The assertion adopted a proclamation by Morocco’s International Ministry that King Mohammed VI had acquired a letter from Netanyahu affirming Moroccan possession of the territory.
Netanyahu revealed Israel is contemplating the “opening of a consulate within the city of Dakhla,” as demanded by Morocco when the 2 international locations normalized relations in 2020.
Israel is just the second nation, after the US, to again up Morocco’s declare to Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony it annexed in 1975. The Polisario Entrance rejected Rabat’s declare and fought for independence up till a UN-brokered cease-fire in 1991.
Whereas the area’s destiny is meant to be determined by a UN referendum, the competing factions have been unable to agree on who’s eligible to vote, and preventing broke out once more for the primary time in 29 years in 2020.
Whereas sparsely populated, Western Sahara incorporates some invaluable sources, together with phosphate deposits and wealthy fishing waters, and is believed to have vital untapped offshore oil deposits as effectively.
Israel and Morocco reestablished diplomatic ties beneath the US-backed Abraham Accords after Washington basically bribed Rabat with the popularity of its declare to Western Sahara. This has strained Morocco’s already-tense relationship with its neighbor, Algeria, which backs the Polisario Entrance.
Following the normalization of relations between Morocco and Israel, Algeria reduce diplomatic ties with Morocco in 2021, citing “hostile actions.” The nation additionally blamed terrorist teams backed by Morocco and Israel for setting the devastating wildfires that killed dozens throughout Algeria.
The Abraham Accords upended years of worldwide consensus concerning the necessity for a UN referendum to resolve who controls Western Sahara, because the UN doesn’t acknowledge Morocco’s annexation of the territory. Nonetheless, Israel has lengthy been in an analogous place concerning worldwide rejection of its personal declare to the West Financial institution, Gaza, East Jerusalem, or the Golan Heights – none of that are acknowledged by the UN.
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