Dronification of the conflict in Western Sahara.

On April 8, 2021, it was rumored (and reported by AFP) that Morocco had launched its first ever drone strike, that killed the Polisario police chief / commander of the national gendarmerie, Addah al-Bendir in Tifariti, an oasis town in the North-eastern part of Western Sahara.

Has Morocco Carried Out Its First Drone Strike In the Western Sahara?

Morocco’s reported use of a drone strike to kill a senior Western Sahara independence fighter would, if confirmed, mark a turning point in the decades-long conflict, experts say. The Polisario Front announced on Wednesday that its police chief Addah al-Bendir had been killed “on the field of honor” in a separatist-controlled part of the disputed desert territory.

Polisario military leader killed by Moroccan drone strike – Archyde

The head of the Polisario Front gendarmerie (independence) was killed by a Moroccan drone strike in the disputed territory of Western Sahara, a senior Saharawi military official told AFP on the night of Wednesday to Thursday. “The commander of the national gendarmerie, the martyr Addah Al-Bendir fell on Tuesday in the field of honor, where …

The strike was thought to be conducted by Harop suicide drones from Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) which the sale of such drones to Morocco was reported by Haaretz in November 2021. Prior to this, Morocco was only known to possess the old Israeli Heron drones bought in 2014 for $50 million.

This prompted the Polisario Front to speed up their acquisition of their own arsenal of drones from “friends”, that had already started since the fall out between Morocco and Iran after the allegedly military support provided by Iranian-backed Hezbollah for the Polisario Front.

During an interview during the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic’s Minister of the Interior (a country proclaimed by the Polisario Front, that is a full member in the African Union), Oman Mansour visit to Mauritania, he revealed that the Polisario will soon be acquiring military drones with differing offensive capabilities in their war against the “Moroccan occupational force”.

Sahara occidental : Le Polisario va acquérir des drones armés – Le Jeune Indépendant

Le Polisario va acquérir bientôt des drones militaires, aux différentes capacités offensives, dans sa guerre contre les forces d’occupation marocaines. C’est le ministre de l’Intérieur de la République sahraouie, Omar Mansour, qui a révélé l’information, lors d’un entretien en marge de sa visite officielle en Mauritanie.

This prompted escalated threats from Morocco, when Omar Hilale, Morocco’s ambassador to the United Nations, threatened that Morocco will react in “an appropriate military response” if Iranian drones are found to reach the hands of their enemies in the Western Sahara.

Morocco warns of “appropriate military response” if Polisario uses Iranian drones

Morocco’s representative to the UN, Omar Hilale, has warned that his country will launch “an appropriate military response” if the Polisario Front resorts to Iranian drones. “It would be a game changer at the military level and Morocco would react accordingly and appropriately,” Hilale warned in statements reported by the Moroccan press.

Citing that the presence of Iranian drones in hands of the Polisario Front, which would be a game-changer “at the military level”.

This threat came after the Moroccan Foreign Minister, Nasser Bourita’s public accusation of Iran during a joint press conference with his Yemeni counterpart on 5th October 2022, for sponsoring terrorism in the Arab World – referring to Yemen and Western Sahara

“Iran is currently the official sponsor of separatism and terrorism in our Arab region,”

Nasser Bourita, Morocco’s Foreign Minister

Iran has vaguely denied this assertion, instead advising Morocco’s Foreign Minister to “instead of seeking help from the Zionist regime to impose its demands on the region, pave the ground for self-determination by the people of Western Sahara.”

Morocco and Iran brawl over Polisario and normalisation

Morocco’s FM has also alleged that Tehran had provided “drones” to the separatist Polisario Front movement, which has been fighting against Morocco in the disputed territory of Western Sahara since 1973.