The National Observatory for Strategic Studies called on all friendly and partner countries of Morocco to adopt initiatives within their legislative institutions to classify the Polisario Front as a terrorist organization.
In a statement issued Monday, the Observatory called on all these countries to enact legal frameworks to criminalize the movement's activities and cut off its sources of support.
The same statement expressed its concerns about what it called “developments related to the activities threatening security and stability carried out by the so-called Polisario Front, which pose a real danger at the regional and international levels, through its involvement in systematic attacks against civilians, its involvement in arms and drug smuggling networks, as well as the recruitment of children and coordination with terrorist organizations operating in the African Sahel region.”
He continued:"Moroccans greatly appreciate the recent initiative launched within the US Congress regarding a bill to designate the Polisario Front as a terrorist organization, considering it a constructive step that aligns with international efforts to combat terrorism and curb separatist tendencies supported by external parties."
In this context, Mohamed El Tayar, President of the National Observatory for Strategic Studies, said,"Moving forward legislative initiatives in countries around the world to classify the Polisario Front as a terrorist organization is important on multiple levels, including legal, political, security, and diplomatic levels."
Al-Tayyar added, in a statement to Hespress, that the legal dimension represents"legitimizing the Moroccan position, especially when parliaments or governments of countries adopt resolutions or laws that place the Polisario on terrorist lists. The Moroccan position in international forums becomes supported by a legislative basis from outside its borders."
The head of the National Observatory for Strategic Studies continued: “The designation also allows these countries to implement counterterrorism laws, including freezing the Front’s assets, banning its activities, and preventing its leaders from traveling. Financing or cooperating with the Front thus becomes a crime punishable by law in these countries.” He pointed out that, on the security and strategic front, it specifically limits the movement’s ability to operate across borders. Classifying it as a terrorist organization prevents it from moving freely in different regions and tightens the noose on its logistical network, he said.
According to the spokesman, this makes it easier to include the issue within the global war on terrorism, making any activity by the Front part of an international security threat rather than simply a regional conflict.
On the political and diplomatic front, Al Tayyar emphasized,"Designating the Polisario Front as a terrorist organization leads to the Front's diplomatic isolation. When multiple countries adopt this position, the Front's political maneuvering space shrinks, making it difficult for it to secure public support."
The same security expert added,"Designating it as a terrorist organization places the countries or entities that support it under political and media pressure."
The pilot stated that, on the diplomatic level, the impact is shifting the international discourse from so-called"self-determination" to "combating terrorism," a shift in narrative that serves Morocco.
The head of the National Observatory for Strategic Studies added,"On the media and symbolic levels, it means changing the public image. The classification places the Polisario Front in the category of violent groups rather than political movements, which influences international public opinion." He added that every country that classifies the Front as a terrorist organization adds it to the list of evidence that can be exploited in media and diplomatic discourse.
