Lehbib Mohamed Abdelaziz, a member of the Polisario Front's National Secretariat and brigade commander, was killed on Sunday during a military operation against the defensive wall erected by Morocco in Western Sahara. Two other fighters from the independence movement fell alongside him, the Sahrawi Press Service (SPS) announced in a statement, describing his death as a "fall on the field of honor." Lehbib Mohamed Abdelaziz was the son of Mohamed Abdelaziz, a historical figure in the Polisario Front who led the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic from its creation in 1976 until his death in 2016 at the age of 68.
A conflict that has persisted since 1976
The Polisario Front, founded in 1973 in Zouerate, Mauritania, to fight the Spanish occupation, has been opposing Morocco since 1976 for control of the disputed territory of Western Sahara. It is supported by Algeria, the movement classified as terrorist by Morocco continues its armed struggle against Rabat, which claims sovereignty over this former Spanish colony. Sunday's incident demonstrates the ongoing clashes along the Moroccan defense line, a military structure that separates the areas under Rabat's control from those administered by the Polisario Front.
The death of Lehbib Mohamed Abdelaziz carries significant symbolic weight for the independence movement. Son of the founding president of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), who died less than a decade ago, he embodied the continuity of a struggle that began over fifty years ago. His passing comes amidst a conflict that has remained frozen for years, despite recurring tensions on the ground and the absence of a political settlement between the parties.
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