Rabat – Four projectiles reportedly landed today near the city of Es-Smara in southern Morocco. According to local media and eyewitnesses, the ordnance fell in an uninhabited area close to a military camp used by the UN MINURSO mission.
No injuries or damages have been reported. The loud explosions frightened nearby residents, who rushed to the scene after hearing the blasts. Videos and photos shared on social media show what appeared to be the remains of the projectiles scattered in the area.
The Polisario Front is believed to be behind the attack, especially with the separatist group’s suspected involvement in similar incidents in the past.
In 2023, four explosions killed one person and injured three others in the southern Moroccan city. The explosions occurred in two residential neighborhoods and an industrial area in the city.
Soon after, Morocco launched an official investigation into the incident. The General Prosecutor at the Laayoune Court of Appeals ordered technical and ballistic analysis to determine the origin and nature of the explosive projectiles.
Morocco’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Omar Hilale, said that MINURSO had confirmed the explosions hit civilian neighborhoods, and that the Polisario had issued a statement indirectly taking responsibility.
“There were no military installations at any of the sites,” Hilale said in a press conference after the incident, adding that “targeting civilians is a terrorist act under international law, and those responsible will not go unpunished.”
Hilale also emphasized that those behind the attacks, as well as those who arm and support them, must be held accountable. He specifically referred to Algeria, which has hosted and financed the Polisario for decades.
This new incident comes amid growing international scrutiny of the Polisario. US Republican Senator Joe Wilson and Democratic Representative Jimmy Panetta recently introduced a bipartisan bill that calls for the group to be designated as a foreign terrorist organization.
The bill references the group’s targeting of civilians and its return to violence following the collapse of the ceasefire in 2020. If passed, the bill could reshape how the US and other allies deal with Polisario and its supporters.
