Polisario leader arrives in Algeria amid tension between Spain and Morocco
Brahim Ghali, newly elected Polisario secretary general and president of the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arabic Democratic Republic, delivers a speech during the PF s extraordinary congress on July 9, 2016 [FAROUK BATICHE/AFP via Getty Images] June 3, 2021 at 10:40 am
The leader of the Polisario Front, Brahim Ghali, landed in Algiers early on Wednesday after being hospitalised in Spain for more than a month. His presence in the city of Logrono triggered a diplomatic row between Madrid and Morocco.
As MEMO reported yesterday, Spain s Supreme Court rejected a custody request for Ghali, who faces allegations of war crimes. No restrictions were imposed on him, so he was allowed to leave the country. Polisario Front spokesman Jalil Mohamed confirmed that Ghali had arrived in Algiers a few hours after he appeared via video link before the court.
The leader of the Western Saharan independence movement has landed in the Algerian capital, Algiers, amid a diplomatic row between Morocco and Spain over his reception for medical treatment by the latter.
The leader of the Western Sahara independence movement, Brahim Ghali, landed in Algiers early on Wednesday after his hospitalization in Spain for more than a month triggered a diplomatic row between Spain and Morocco. "He arrived safe and sound," said Jalil Mohamed, the Polisario Front's spokesman in Spain.
Reuters
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A Hawker Beechcraft 1000 plane carrying Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali leaves Pamplona airport, Spain, June 2, 2021. REUTERS/Vincent West
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The leader of the Western Sahara independence movement, Brahim Ghali, returned to Algeria on Wednesday after spending more than a month in hospital in Spain - a stay which triggered a diplomatic row between Spain and Morocco. He arrived safe and sound, said Jalil Mohamed, the Polisario Front s spokesman in Spain.
Algerian state television later showed President Abdelmadjid Tebboune visiting Ghali in hospital, but gave no details of their discussion.
Rabat has not yet commented on Ghali s departure from Spain but had previously said that it would not alone resolve the dispute.
Polisario Front leader arrives in Algeria after Covid treatment in Spain
Issued on: Brahim Ghali, Polisario leader, during interview with AFP, Algeria, 2017. STRINGER / RYAD KRAMDI / AFP 3 min Brahim Ghali, leader of the Polisario Front, the separatist group in the disputed Western Sahara, has arrived in Algeria after a Spanish court decided not to detain him in connection with allegations of human rights abuses, following weeks of hospital treatment that triggered a row with Morocco. Advertising Read more
Algeria supports the Polisario Front in its campaign against the Moroccan government, which claims sovereignty over Western Sahara – a former Spanish colony.
Polisario Front spokesperson Jalil Mohamed was quoted by Reuters news agency on Wednesday as saying that Ghali had arrived in Algeria, “safe and sound”.