“The first striking aspect [you see] upon entering the city of Laayoune is the infrastructure, which reflects a heightened level of human, economic, and social development, contradicting the portrayal by Algeria’s military regime and the Polisario,” says Algerian activist and opponent Anouar Malek in a nearly three-hour video posted on his YouTube channel on Thursday. The latter, he said, falsely depict Laayoune as a “city solely dedicated to military and security operations, as well as violations and abuses.”
In his field investigation, entitled “The End of the Polisario,” Malek asserted that the people of Dakhla have firmly embraced the Moroccan identity of the Sahara, and after nearly a century, there is no trace of the Polisario in Dakhla and Oued Ed-Dahab.
Malek documented his journey to Laayoune, which coincided with Morocco’s announcement as the host of the 2030 World Cup along with Portugal and Spain, making Morocco the second MENA country, after Qatar, to host this significant event.
He noted that the Sahrawi people in Dakhla took to the streets chanting “Long live the king” to celebrate their country’s major achievement.
Malek also underscored the significance of the visit to the Sahara by the UN Secretary-General Personal Envoy for the Sahara, Staffan de Mistura, who met with several Sahrawi officials.
A Sahraoui official says in the video that 86% to 88% of the state-allocated budgets go directly to human resources, adding that Morocco’s king has spearheaded substantial structural reforms in social, political, cultural, and rights aspects, enabling the Sahraoui people to live freely and enjoy all their rights, contrary to what others claim.
The video also showcased that over 800 young men and women have benefited from development programs in the Sahara region through various income-generating projects.
In the video, Malek talks about support and rights of Sahraoui women, emphasizing the significant attention and protections provided by the Moroccan government.
Additionally, Malek highlighted the Moroccan state’s involvement in all matters in the Sahara region, encompassing different tribes. He also highlighted major development projects expected to transform the region into a promising future.
Malek also exposed the propaganda of the Algerian regime that fakes the truth and misleads public opinion in order to serve its interests at the expense of innocent people.
“When traveling in the Moroccan desert, one witnesses scenes reflecting the Moroccan state’s keen interest in these regions, striving to transform them into advanced cities with all the necessary facilities for Moroccan citizens, even in the most remote areas of this vast desert,” he remarked.
He asked where is the separatist front in all of this development? No where to be found, except for their sandals strewn at the crossing of the El Guerguerat border post.
“Anyone entering the Moroccan desert finds no evidence of the Polisario’s claims or their presence among the people, occupation, self-determination, or anything else as portrayed in the Algerian military media,” he stated.
The journalist said he pondered Ibrahim Ghali’s decision to terminate the ceasefire in November 2020 and the numerous statements from the Polisario detailing military operations in areas they claim they occupy. But he’s left with the question: where is the war?