Rabat - After several months of waiting, Mauritania has reportedly accepted Hamid Chabar as the Moroccan ambassador appointed to the country, according to Moroccan media.
Rabat – After several months of waiting, Mauritania has reportedly accepted Hamid Chabar as the Moroccan ambassador appointed to the country, according to Moroccan media.
the Mauritanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which stated that Chabar‘s appointment was approved ahead of an official accreditation ceremony, according to Moroccan media outlets.
However, the news has not been reported by major Mauritanian news outlets, and so doubt remains as to whether Chabar will indeed become Morocco’s new ambassador to Nouakchott.
Previous media reports suggested that Mauritania had rejected Chabar. The speculations grew amid the delay of his accreditation by Mauritania.
Chabar was appointed following the death of former Moroccan ambassador to the country, Abderahmane Benomar in December. The deceased was the longest serving ambassador in Mauritania.
The Moroccan diplomat was appointed by Morocco in May. The choice of Chabar to represent the kingdom in Nouakchott, taking into account the fragile relations between the two countries in the last years particularly over the issue of Western Sahara, did not escape the notice of media outlets in both countries.
Chabar is an expert in the question of Western Sahara, having previously served as an advisor to the Ministry of Interior on the issue. He was also governor of the southern region of Oued Eddahab-Lagouira and was member of the committee that drew Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for the region.
His alleged rejection by Mauritanian authorities raised questions. Some linked it to the case of Mohamed Ould Bouamatou, a Mauritanian opponent to president Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz who currently lives in Morocco. The Mauritanian president is said to be upset by Bouamatou’s presence on Moroccan soil.
However, the Mauritanian government responded to the rumors in September by denying it has rejected Chabar. The government’s spokesperson, Mohamed Lemine Ould Cheikh, said that the process of accrediting Chabar is following its “normal course.”
