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New revelations continue to surface since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, exposing the dark realities behind the dictator’s survival tactics.
As opposition groups uncover the lavish lifestyle of Assad and his inner circle, complete with pictures, luxury cars and excess, the stark contrast between this and the suffering of Syrian civilians becomes all too clear.
Among the series of revelations about the fallen regime is its collaboration with separatist factions, such as the Polisario Front.
A document marked as “highly confidential” has recently emerged, highlighting a secret alliance between the Syrian regime and the separatist group claiming independence in southern Morocco.
The discovery of this document has naturally raised eyebrows in Morocco, both in the corridors of power and among analysts and observers.
While Morocco World News has been unable to independently verify its authenticity, the confidential document appears to be an official correspondence from the Syrian government dating back to January 2012.
According to the document, Polisario members sent militias to undergo military training with the Syrian Arab army.
It details a series of communications between Algeria’s Ministry of Defense, Syria’s Ministry of Defense, and Polisario’s leadership, culminating in an agreement for combat training involving 120 Polisario members.
The fighters were to be divided into four groups, the document detailed, revealing that senior members of the Polisario leadership also traveled to Beirut in December 2011 for consultations with Hezbollah to coordinate on military training missions in “special operations” in Syria.
If authenticated, the document shows the Assad regime’s alliance with groups that not only threaten the sovereignty of neighboring countries but also engage in destabilizing activities across the region.
Read also: Capture of Polisario Militants in Aleppo Shows Extent of Iran’s Presence in Sahara
In addition to its continued maneuvers to undermine Morocco’s sovereignty over its southern provinces, the Polisario Front has also been involved in terrorist operations tagring Moroccan civilians.
The group’s most recent attack took place in November in Mahbes, a southern Moroccan region, where a terrorist attack targeted civilians during the Green March celebrations.
While no casualties were reported, such attacks serve to destabilize the region and hinder the UN-led political process aimed at resolving the dispute over Western Sahara.
Similar acts also raise growing concerns about the long-term presence of Polisario as a destabilizing force burdening the stability of the region.
Many security officials have shared their concerns about Polisario’s links to terrorist groups.
In 2017, security officials in Morocco identified 100 Polisario members who joined ISIS.
Adnan Abu Al Walid, who was one of the most wanted ISIS members, was a Polisario element before joining ISIS.
With the Assad regime’s collapse, many recent reports have emphasized, Polisario has lost its last ally in the Middle East.
Syria has recognized Polisario’s self-styled SADR since the late 1970s, and most observers believe the end of al Assad’s regime marks the end of Syria’s backing of the separatist Polisario Front.
In fact, several reports have suggested that the Polisario Front recently sent a number of elements to fight alongside Syrian government forces ahead of Assad’s fall.
Polisario’s involvement in Syria is hardly surprising; it is just another chapter in the separatist group’s long history of involvement in destabilizing actions across the region.
In addition, Morocco had long documented the group’s collusion with Iran and Hezbollah.
Morocco notably froze relations with Iran in May 2018 over indications of Iranian-backed Hezbollah’s training of the Polisario militias. After all the three parties denied the accusation, Morocco displayed documents and satellite images corroborating the collusion.
