Sahara

UN Secretary-General António Guterres met with Algeria's Minister of Foreign Affairs at the United Nations, according to UN Media. No details of the discussion were released, but such meetings typically cover regional security, the situation in the Sahel and Western Sahara, and cooperation between Algeria and the organization. Algeria is a key diplomatic player in North Africa and a non-permanent member of the Security Council.

Researchers at Stellenbosch University conclude that trophy hunting in sub-Saharan Africa is more positive than negative for both local communities and nature. The study argues that regulated hunting revenue supports conservation and livelihoods in ways that may outweigh its harms, challenging common assumptions among animal welfare advocates and conservationists.

Cuba has reaffirmed its support for the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination, a longstanding position in Havana's foreign policy toward Western Sahara. The statement was reported by the Sahrawi news agency and comes as the decades-old dispute over the territory, pitting Morocco against the Polisario Front, remains on the international agenda at the United Nations.

Morocco is undertaking a major diplomatic initiative at the United Nations aimed at resolving the long-running Moroccan Sahara dispute. The effort signals Rabat's intent to advance its position through UN channels, drawing attention from observers of North African diplomacy. The Sahara question remains one of the region's most enduring territorial disputes, and any renewed movement at the UN is being closely watched.

One hundred and five years after the proclamation of the Rif Republic in 1921, the PNR (Partido Nacionalista Rifeno) is holding its fifth international conference in Brussels to commemorate the anniversary. The event brings together supporters of the Rif cause from across Europe, with discussion touching on Spain, the Sahara and Algeria, and on what organisers describe as curbing Moroccan expansionism in the region.

Peru has expressed its adherence to UN Security Council Resolution 2797, which is being presented as the basis for resolving the long-running dispute over the Moroccan Sahara. The move aligns Peru with the UN framework for the territory's future, adding to international diplomatic weight behind the resolution amid ongoing efforts to settle one of Africa's most enduring territorial conflicts.

Burkina Faso and the United Arab Emirates have endorsed Morocco's plan for Western Sahara, the disputed territory contested since 1975. Algeria is backing the Polisario Front, the armed movement seeking independence. The latest diplomatic moves deepen the split at the United Nations over the fate of Africa's last major unresolved decolonisation dispute.

Talks over the disputed territory of Western Sahara, known as the Moroccan Sahara in Morocco, are reportedly moving into a new phase. The long-running conflict between Morocco and the Polisario Front over the region's status has been the subject of United Nations-mediated efforts for decades, and renewed diplomatic momentum is now drawing attention.

El País reports on the transboundary journeys of air pollution, tracing how ozone, Saharan dust and wildfire smoke migrate across national borders and continents. The piece examines how dust from the Sahara reaches distant regions and how wildfire emissions spread far from their origins, underlining that air quality is a shared, cross-border problem requiring international attention.

The Polisario Front's representative to the United Nations has met with the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations. The Sahara Press Agency reported the meeting, which concerns the long-running Western Sahara dispute, where the Polisario Front seeks independence from Morocco and the UN maintains a peacekeeping mission. Details of what was discussed have not yet been released.

The UN Security Council is scheduled to meet on October 7-8 to discuss Western Sahara, ahead of a vote on the renewal of the MINURSO peacekeeping mandate. The long-running dispute over the territory remains unresolved, and the mandate renewal is closely watched by Morocco, the Polisario Front and regional stakeholders.

Sahrawi prisoners from the Gdeim Izik group have resumed their hunger strike, according to Western Sahara Resource Watch. The Gdeim Izik prisoners were detained after the 2010 protest camp in Western Sahara and their cases remain a central human rights issue in the conflict over the territory. Advocacy groups have repeatedly raised concerns about their detention conditions and treatment.

Elghalia Djimi addressed the UN Human Rights Council, calling for the implementation of the Durban Declaration decisions and respect for the Geneva Conventions in Western Sahara. Her appeal puts the long-disputed territory back on the council's agenda, pressing international bodies to enforce human rights obligations in the occupied territories.

A Sahrawi human rights defender addressed the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, calling for an independent international mechanism to monitor human rights in Western Sahara. The appeal, carried by the Sahrawi news agency, renews long-standing calls for outside oversight of the disputed territory, where rights groups say monitoring remains limited amid the ongoing conflict with Morocco.

Chile and El Salvador have expressed support for Morocco's autonomy plan for Western Sahara at the United Nations, according to Morocco World News. The plan, which would grant the disputed territory autonomy under Moroccan sovereignty, has been gaining diplomatic backing from a growing number of countries, though the Polisario Front and Algeria continue to push for a referendum on independence.

The Polisario Front's representative to the United Nations confirmed that the basis for a just and lasting solution to the Western Sahara conflict lies in guaranteeing the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination and independence. The statement was reported by the Sahrawi Arab News Agency, reiterating the movement's long-standing position in its decades-old dispute with Morocco over the territory.

The UN Security Council is set to address in October the future of its peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara, MINURSO, as the mandate for the long-running operation comes up for renewal. The deliberations come amid continued tension over the disputed territory, and observers of the Sahrawi question are watching closely for signals on whether the Council will adjust the mission's scope or the broader diplomatic framework.

The Mauritanian Socialist Party (MSP) has called on UN Secretary-General António Guterres to open the Western Sahara peace process to a moderate Sahrawi voice, arguing the current framework is too narrow. The appeal targets the long-stalled UN-led negotiations over the disputed territory, and comes amid renewed international debate over how to restart talks involving Sahrawi representation beyond the established parties.