It is a cruel and ruthless military occupation, one which has persisted for decades and been declared illegal by international organizations. Hundreds of thousands of Arabs have been turned into refugees, as settlers sent by the occupying power slowly but steadily alter the tenuous demographic balance.
Human rights abuses are rampant, and although the government signed a peace treaty years ago, intended to grant the residents a voice in determining their own future, it has done everything in its power to prevent the deal from being realized.
Welcome to Western Sahara, a large strip of land subjugated by Morocco along northern Africa's Atlantic coastline.
If you have not heard of the area, or of its myriad problems, that is probably because it receives little if any coverage in the Western press. Apparently, the world is too busy berating Israel for defending itself against the Palestinians to take much notice, particularly since it is an Arab state (i.e. Morocco) that is doing the "occupying."
Cases such as Western Sahara provide the most compelling proof of the international community's double standard regarding Israel and various other global conflicts. For all the attention that is devoted to every IDF roadblock that is set up, every curfew that is enforced, and every Palestinian terrorist's home that is demolished, virtually nothing is said nor heard when it comes to other land disputes, such as Morocco's brutal occupation of its neighbor.
Read the full article by Michael Freund here: Bordering on Obsession
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