Western Sahara: Polisario front challenges UN Envoy as MINURSO mandate vote nears

With just two weeks to go before the vote on extending MINURSO’s mandate, tensions are rising over Western Sahara.

On Tuesday, October 13, the Polisario Front issued a statement following closed-door talks at the UN Security Council, challenging the neutrality of UN envoy Staffan de Mistura.

The movement accuses him of leaning toward Morocco’s autonomy plan, warning that a mediator cannot decide a people’s future in advance.

But the Polisario Front insists it is not walking away from negotiations, which resumed earlier this year. Instead, it is demanding a change in approach, with self-determination at the center of any political solution.

Meanwhile, the movement says MINURSO remains indispensable, but its mission must not lose its purpose.