Introduction
The Collective of Sahrawi Human Rights Defenders (CODESA) has released a comprehensive human rights report marking 50 years of the Moroccan military occupation of Western Sahara.
The document, titled:
“Western Sahara: The Last Test of the United Nations’ Credibility,”
provides detailed evidence of grave violations, war crimes, and crimes against humanity committed against Sahrawi civilians since 1975.
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United Nations Failure to Protect the Sahrawi People
According to the report, the United Nations has failed to uphold its legal and historical responsibility to ensure the Sahrawi people’s inalienable right to self-determination.
Despite the presence of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) since 1991, Morocco continues to violate international law, obstruct the referendum, and defy UN resolutions.
CODESA notes that this situation represents a serious setback for the credibility of the UN system, especially regarding the protection of peoples under colonial rule.
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A Chronological Documentation of Violations (1975–2025)
CODESA’s report adopts a chronological approach that highlights the evolution of Moroccan practices over five decades:
1. The Invasion and Early Occupation (1975–1991)
• Aerial bombardments using napalm and white phosphorus
• Mass displacement of Sahrawis to refugee camps
• Enforced disappearances and mass graves
2. Systematic Repression (2002–2020)
• Widespread arbitrary arrests
• Torture in secret detention centers
• Restrictions on freedom of movement and assembly
• Expulsion of international observers and journalists
3. Post-Ceasefire Breakdown (2020–Present)
• Deployment of armed drones to target civilians east of the military wall
• Killing of Sahrawi civilians and foreign nationals
• Escalation of military aggression along the buffer zones
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Documented Crimes Against Humanity
The report includes verifiable data on a range of violations, including:
• Extrajudicial executions
• Enforced disappearances
• Arbitrary detention and torture
• Forced displacement and property confiscation
• Racial discrimination and systematic colonization
• Plunder of natural resources
• Environmental destruction and landmine contamination
CODESA stresses that the real scale of these crimes is much greater, due to the severe restrictions imposed on human rights monitoring and the absence of unfettered access to the occupied territory.
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Urgent Calls for International Accountability
CODESA concludes its report with several urgent recommendations:
• Immediate end to Morocco’s military occupation
• Creation of an independent international fact-finding commission
• Accountability for perpetrators of war crimes and crimes against humanity
• Full implementation of the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination and independence
• Establishment of a permanent UN human rights monitoring mechanism in Western Sahara
• Protection measures for civilians living under occupation
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Conclusion
CODESA’s report stands as a historic and authoritative record of five decades of systematic abuses against the Sahrawi people. It exposes not only the scale of Moroccan repression but also the failure of the international community to end colonialism in Western Sahara.
The report reaffirms that a just and lasting peace will remain impossible as long as the Sahrawi people are denied their right to decide their own future.
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