Morocco’s Ministry of Interior has announced that it suspended sand extraction operations in the “Zone Zero” region along the northeastern border with Algeria because it “disrupted natural border markers,” local media reported.
The ministry identified the affected area as “El Arja,” a zone at the center of recurring tensions between Morocco and Algeria. In response, Moroccan authorities have suspended all sand quarrying activities in the region.
El Arja, located in the Oulad Slimane area, has long been a sensitive point along the Morocco-Algeria border. Tensions escalated in March 2021 when Algerian forces intervened to expel Moroccan farmers, asserting that the area lay within Algerian territory.
At the time, Moroccan farmers staged protests, urging the government to defend what they claimed were ancestral lands cultivated for generations.
The dispute highlights the historical rivalry between the two nations, rooted in territorial disagreements dating back to the Sand War of 1963.
Though the conflict formally ended with a ceasefire in February 1964, the demilitarized zone established between the countries has failed to ease bilateral tensions fully.
Moroccan authorities are working to find a resolution that aligns with legal frameworks while safeguarding the interests of local communities caught in the crossfire of geopolitical tensions.
The region’s residents face the compounded challenges of economic uncertainty and political instability, exacerbated by what Morocco perceives as Algeria’s persistent provocations.