Algiers, 28 July 2026 (SPS) – The scientific symposium organized by the Algerian National Institute for Comprehensive Strategic Studies, in partnership with the Sahrawi Center for Strategic Studies, concluded on Tuesday in Algiers with participants reaffirming that the only just and lasting solution to the question of Western Sahara lies in enabling the Sahrawi people to exercise its inalienable right to self-determination through a free and fair referendum in accordance with international legitimacy.
The second and final day of the symposium featured a lecture by the Sahrawi Ambassador to Algeria, Khatri Addouh, entitled "Prospects for a Future Settlement and Solution." In his presentation, Ambassador Addouh stressed that the settlement agreed upon by the two parties to the conflict since 1991 is based on the organization of a UN-supervised self-determination referendum. He described this process as the only path to achieving a just and lasting peace in the region and called on the international community to strengthen its support for the United Nations' efforts to complete the decolonization process in Western Sahara.
For his part, the President of the Algerian National Institute for Comprehensive Strategic Studies, Abdelaziz Medjahed, closed the symposium by emphasizing that the expansionist policies of the Moroccan occupation date back to the 1940s. He called for the mobilization of academic, media and political efforts to enable the Sahrawi people to exercise their legitimate right to self-determination and independence.
Legal experts participating in the symposium urged intensified efforts to hold Morocco accountable for crimes committed in the occupied territories of Western Sahara through the internationalization of documented violations and the filing of cases before international and regional judicial bodies. They also stressed the need to adopt a more effective approach to counter the narrative promoted by the Moroccan occupation in an attempt to undermine the Sahrawi people's right to self-determination.
In their final recommendations, participants called for strict adherence to international legitimacy and the implementation of United Nations resolutions concerning the decolonization of Western Sahara. They also renewed their demand for the expansion of the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) to include the monitoring of the human rights situation, including the protection of the Sahrawi people's permanent sovereignty over their natural resources.
The symposium further recommended strengthening the role of civil society in monitoring and documenting violations and crimes committed in the occupied territories, supporting victims in submitting individual and collective complaints before international and regional courts, and advocating for the appointment of a UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Western Sahara.
Regarding natural resources and media, participants stressed the importance of exposing the scale of Morocco's exploitation of Sahrawi natural resources and countering misleading narratives surrounding the issue. They also called for the development of specialized media training programmes and a comprehensive communication strategy to support the Sahrawi cause through the production of multilingual digital content based on credible sources and scientific tools for monitoring and analysing international media discourse.
Related blogs
