Moroccan Politicians to Tunisian President: Hosting Polisario Leader Is 'Stab in the Back'

Rabat – Moroccan politicians across the spectrum have denounced the Tunisian president’s decision to receive the leader of the separatist Polisario Front, with many saying the move is a “stab in the back” to Morocco’s territorial integrity.

The strong condemnations come as the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD8) closes today in Tunis amid controversy over the decision of Tunisia to invite the leader of the separatist Polisario Front to take part in the event.

On Friday, Tunisia’s President Kais Saied personally welcomed the separatist leader at the airport in Tunis, prompting a strongly worded reaction from Morocco which considers the gesture recognition of the separatist group’s claims over the Western Sahara region in southern Morocco.

The diplomatic feud has since hit a boiling point as Tunisia has dismissed Morocco’s reaction as exaggerated and surprising.

Amid the ongoing controversy, Morocco’s ruling party, the National Rally for Independents, described President Saied’s move in a statement as “an unprecedented hostility against Morocco and its territorial integrity.”

The statement added, “This is tangible proof of Kais Saied’s reckless cycle of decision-making that he, unfortunately, dragged Tunisia into. These hostile actions against friendly states will not benefit the Tunisian people in any way.”

While Tunisia’s successive governments have long attempted to stay positively neutral in the complex Sahara dispute, the statement argued, the current Tunisian president has signaled his desire to join countries that oppose Morocco’s strategic interests and challenge its territorial integrity.

“With this decision, the Tunisian ruling system has made itself an enemy of Morocco, joining the ranks of pro-division and separatism voices in the region,” it said. “These voices only seek to deepen dangerous divisions, and threaten the prosperity and democratic process that our peoples deserve.”

The Socialist Union of Popular Forces, another Moroccan political party, also called the move a “stab in the back” and “a blatant violation of and disrespect to the spirit of bilateral relations” between Rabat and Tunis.

Mohamed Nabil, Secretary General of an opposition party, condemned President Saied’s hosting of the Polisario chief as a “foolish” move that marked a dangerous turning point for Morocco-Tunisia relations.

While also slamming President Saied’s reception of Ghali, Morocco’s former Head of Government, Saadeddine El-Othmani, said that the Tunisian president’s decision to treat the separatist leader as a head of state does not “affect Morocco’s just and strong stance on its territorial sovereignty.”

El-Othmani tweeted: “It’s especially painful when it is your brother stabbing you in the back.”