UN alarmed over worsening situation in Western Sahara
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that he is alarmed over the worsening human rights landscape in occupied Western Sahara, urging immediate corrective measures to avert further deterioration, as reported by AL24 News on August 25.
In his report covering 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025 under UN agenda item 58, Guterres lamented Morocco’s continued refusal to allow the UN Human Rights Commissioner access to the territory, in defiance of multiple Security Council resolutions, including the recent Resolution 2756 (2024).
“The ongoing deterioration is both alarming and unsustainable,” he declared, while affirming his conviction that “a fair, sustainable and mutually acceptable political solution” still remains attainable—one that preserves the Sahrawi people’s right to self-determination.
Guterres further underscored the absence of “independent, impartial, comprehensive and regular human rights monitoring,” noting that observers, parliamentarians, researchers, journalists, and lawyers, continue to face inexcusable access restrictions with dozens denied entry or expelled.
He also raised concerns over violations tied to 79 Sahrawi activists and alleged abuses linked to so-called coastal development projects, which have reportedly involved extensive land seizures, property destruction, and forced displacements.
Regarding members of the “Gdeim Izik” group incarcerated beyond Western Sahara, he cited a November 2024 Working Group on Arbitrary Detention report that found prison conditions worsening, marked by solitary confinement, family visitation bans, and limited medical access.
These observations echo ongoing reports of repression. For instance, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders previously condemned the violent assault on activist Mahfouda Bamba Lafkir by Moroccan police.
Similarly, related developments saw Morocco refuse entry to Spanish pro-Polisario individuals and evict multiple foreign parliamentarians and observers, showcasing the regime’s persistent efforts to silence external scrutiny.
Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita has previously described UN proposals regarding the partition of the disputed territory as unacceptable. The UN plan would see an independent Western Sahara in the southern part of the territory with the northern section becoming a part of Morocco.
At the same time, the Polisario Front advocates for a referendum on self-determination, which had been planned when a ceasefire was signed in 1991 but was never implemented.
AL24 News, Maghrebi.org
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