https://sagire.online/topic/maghreb/ Rolling analysis and coverage of geopolitics, energy, security and supply chains. en Thu, 05 Nov 2026 03:25:00 -0300 https://sagire.online/wire/446f78fa/https://sagire.online/wire/446f78fa/Tue, 03 Nov 2026 02:22:00 -0300The Russian flag was raised in the Western Sahara territory controlled by the Polisario Front, in gratitude for Moscow's position at the UN Security Council on the conflict, Mohamed Yeslem Beissat, head of the Polisario delegation that visited Moscow this spring, told Sputnik. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the country could not support an initiative that would strip the people of Western Sahara of their right to vote.RussiaWestern SaharaMaghrebUnited Nations https://sagire.online/wire/bb13aea6/https://sagire.online/wire/bb13aea6/Mon, 02 Nov 2026 22:22:00 -0300Cartoonist and graffiti artist Yasser Mounbir was sentenced at first instance in Casablanca to four years in prison for insulting the king and fined 40,000 dirhams, with his lawyers announcing an appeal.MoroccoPress freedomMaghreb https://sagire.online/wire/b5602ad8/https://sagire.online/wire/b5602ad8/Sun, 01 Nov 2026 12:22:00 -0300UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned of potential military escalation across Western Sahara following the termination of the body’s 35-year-old peacekeeping mission in the disputed territory, according to TRT World. The UN said the departure of the UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) “does not abrogate” the territory’s people’s “inalienable right to self-determination”.Western SaharaUnited NationsAfricaMaghreb https://sagire.online/wire/2178f767/https://sagire.online/wire/2178f767/Sun, 01 Nov 2026 01:22:00 -0300The United Nations Security Council did not adopt a resolution extending the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), whose mandate expires on October 31, 2026. A draft tabled by the United States received 11 votes in favor, 1 veto from Russia and 3 abstentions, according to the United Nations. The US draft would also have rebranded the force from MINURSO to MINUSO, dropping the R that stands for a referendum on the territory’s self-determination, according to Deutsche Welle.United NationsWestern SaharaMaghrebDiplomacy https://sagire.online/wire/2b374ba7/https://sagire.online/wire/2b374ba7/Fri, 30 Oct 2026 20:23:00 -0300Russia and the United States vetoed each other’s rival Western Sahara resolutions at the Security Council on Friday, leaving the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping mission there without a renewal a day before its mandate expires, according to Reuters, in a text republished by The Star. The US-drafted resolution would have cemented Morocco’s autonomy plan as the only basis for talks and scaled back the military component of the mission. The Russian-drafted resolution, which would have extended the mandate for another year without changes, was vetoed by the United States.United NationsRussiaUnited StatesMoroccoWestern SaharaMaghrebAfrica https://sagire.online/wire/d9b471a1/https://sagire.online/wire/d9b471a1/Wed, 28 Oct 2026 04:22:00 -0300Ten years after Mouhcine Fikri’s death sparked the Rif protests, six Hirak leaders remain in prison, including Nasser Zefzafi, sentenced to 20 years, according to Middle East Eye. The movement grew out of the fishmonger Fikri’s death; he was crushed inside a garbage truck in Al Hoceima on October 28, 2016 while trying to retrieve his confiscated catch, according to the outlet.MaghrebHuman rightsProtests https://sagire.online/wire/7ce52b7c/https://sagire.online/wire/7ce52b7c/Thu, 22 Oct 2026 22:23:00 -0300Tunisian police fired tear gas to disperse protesters in Ettadhamen, a suburb of the capital, following the death of a man detained on suspicion of drug dealing, according to Al Jazeera. In Jebiniana, in Sfax governorate, police clashed with protesters following the death of a man whose relatives said he had died while being chased by security forces, also according to Al Jazeera.TunisiaMaghrebProtests https://sagire.online/wire/9aa1aa67/https://sagire.online/wire/9aa1aa67/Wed, 21 Oct 2026 12:23:00 -0300Libya’s eastern-based House of Representatives unanimously approved on Tuesday the memorandum of understanding signed on November 27, 2019, with Turkey that delimits the two countries’ maritime jurisdiction areas in the Mediterranean, according to TRT World. The memorandum was signed by Libya’s then internationally recognised Government of National Accord. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed the decision on Wednesday. “I hope this important decision will be beneficial,” he said, according to TRT World.LibyaTurkeyMaritime bordersMaghrebDiplomacy https://sagire.online/wire/87371336/https://sagire.online/wire/87371336/Tue, 13 Oct 2026 06:25:00 -0300King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia are visiting Ceuta months after more than 70,000 migrants arrived from Morocco, France24 reported. The visit has divided residents and risks reigniting diplomatic tensions with Morocco, which claims sovereignty over Ceuta and Melilla.SpainMoroccoMigrationDiplomacyEuropeMaghreb https://sagire.online/wire/dccdac12/https://sagire.online/wire/dccdac12/Mon, 12 Oct 2026 00:23:00 -0300Algerian authorities announced on Sunday the arrest of 61 Moroccan nationals earlier this month on suspicion of planning “acts of sabotage”, according to Hespress, with AFP. The General Directorate of National Security (DGSN) said the 61, including a former soldier in the Moroccan army, “were preparing to commit acts of sabotage undermining security and public order”. Le Monde reported the same arrests.AlgeriaMoroccoMaghrebPublic security https://sagire.online/wire/7665a365/https://sagire.online/wire/7665a365/Thu, 08 Oct 2026 08:23:00 -0300Eight Israeli arms manufacturers, including the three giants Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Elbit Systems and Rafael, are participating in the 2026 Marrakech Air Show for the first time, Middle East Eye reported. Morocco and Israel formalised ties in 2020 under a US-brokered normalisation agreement, in exchange for Washington’s recognition of Moroccan sovereignty claim over Western Sahara. Hundreds gathered outside parliament in Rabat to denounce the deepening ties with Israel on the first day of the air show.MoroccoIsraelWestern SaharaMaghreb https://sagire.online/wire/c4c16512/https://sagire.online/wire/c4c16512/Sat, 03 Oct 2026 06:24:00 -0300Four people were arrested after drones attacked the Zawiya oil station in western Libya and caused a fire, according to the Guardian. Three Libyans arrested were linked to Saddam Haftar, son of the Libyan warlord Khalifa Haftar, who faces allegations he oversaw a “terror cell” that launched drone attacks on fuel facilities and power stations. The Tripoli-based Government of National Unity says working with Saddam Haftar is “impossible”. The tank that was hit held about 4.5 million litres of fuel.LibyaMaghrebOilConflictDrones https://sagire.online/wire/d7639216/https://sagire.online/wire/d7639216/Wed, 30 Sep 2026 06:23:00 -0300The king of Morocco on Tuesday named Marrakesh mayor Fatima Ezzahra El Mansouri the country’s first woman prime minister, after her centre-right Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) won last week’s parliamentary elections. PAM won 97 of 395 seats in the House of Representatives — 31 more than the next closest competitor, Dawn reported. “For the first time in our country’s history, a woman is taking on the responsibility of leading the government”, El Mansouri said.MoroccoMaghrebElections https://sagire.online/wire/0125e72b/https://sagire.online/wire/0125e72b/Tue, 29 Sep 2026 14:23:00 -0300Fatima Zahra El Mansouri has been named Morocco’s first female prime minister, after her centrist Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) won the most seats in last week’s parliamentary elections, according to BBC News. She was appointed by King Mohammed VI and is only the second woman to lead a government in the Arab world, after Tunisia’s Najla Bouden.MoroccoElectionsMaghreb https://sagire.online/wire/a2c92ceb/https://sagire.online/wire/a2c92ceb/Sat, 26 Sep 2026 01:20:00 -0300Morocco’s Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM) won the parliamentary elections with 97 of the 395 seats in the House of Representatives, according to final results announced by the Interior Ministry. The party fell well short of the 198 seats needed for an outright majority and will need to build a coalition with other parties to govern. The Associated Press confirmed the figure from the Interior Ministry.MoroccoElectionsMaghreb