History UsefulNotes / ThatDryPatchOfLandUnrecognized

** Prime Minister: Mohamed Wali Akeik

That patch of land, usually known as the ''Western Sahara'', is the biggest patch of land currently non-self-governed in the world. It’s also known as the ''Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic'' by its self-proclaimed government. The largest city and ''de jure'' capital is Laayoune/El Aaiún, but the SADR does not control it, instead basing itself in a small oasis town called Tifariti, located some 300 km to the southeast.

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, containing the aforementioned Laayoune, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, [[TheManBehindTheMan which Morocco claims to be the one pulling its strings]], which sees the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the latter attempted to take some territory off them (which had been transferred to them by UsefulNotes/{{France}}, their colonial power). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, the UsefulNotes/UnitedStates. No side is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer autonomy to the Sahrawis. This comes as no surprise since Spain, one of Morocco's two former masters (Spain controlled most of the Mediterranean coast of Morocco from 1912 to 1956), counts two autonomous communities in Morocco as part of its dominion to this day. An independent Western Sahara is recognized by less than half of the UsefulNotes/UnitedNations members, none of them part of the Security Council. The African countries are divided over the issue, though SADR was admitted to the African Union in 1982, causing Morocco to quit in protest, although it rejoined the organization in 2017. The Arab League officially supports Morocco's position, but five of its members (including, of course, Algeria) recognize the SADR. Starting from 2019, several countries supporting Morocco or [[Turncoat otherwise switching sides from the SADR]] (most of them located in Africa and the Arab world) opened consulates in Laayoune and the seaside town of Dakhla, with the United States officially recognizing Morocco's claim to the territory in December 2020 in exchange for an agreement normalizing relations between Morocco and Israel.

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, containing the aforementioned Laayoune, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, [[TheManBehindTheMan which Morocco claims to be the one pulling its strings]], which sees the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the latter attempted to take some territory off them (which had been transferred to them by UsefulNotes/{{France}}, their colonial power). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, the UsefulNotes/UnitedStates. No side is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer autonomy to the Sahrawis. This comes as no surprise since Spain, one of Morocco's two former masters (Spain controlled most of the Mediterranean coast of Morocco from 1912 to 1956), counts two autonomous communities in Morocco as part of its dominion to this day. An independent Western Sahara is recognized by less than half of the UsefulNotes/UnitedNations members, none of them part of the Security Council. The African countries are divided over the issue, though SADR was admitted to the African Union in 1982, causing Morocco to quit in protest, although it rejoined the organization in 2017. The Arab League officially supports Morocco's position, but five of its members (including, of course, Algeria) recognize the SADR.

* '''ISO-3166-1 Code:''' EH[[note]]Not currently in use; reserved for if the conflict results in an agreement between Morocco and the Polisario Front.[[/note]]

* '''ISO-3166-1 Code:''' EH[[labelnote]]Not currently in use; reserved for if the conflict results in an agreement between Morocco and the Polisario Front.[[/labelnote]]

* '''ISO-3166-1 Code:''' EH

->The flag uses all four Pan-Arab colors, and is similar to that used by Palestine, distinguishable only by the red crescent and star in the center, symbolizing Islam. Were the Polisario Front to be granted independence, the black and green stripes would be inverted.

Originally a [[UsefulNotes/{{Spain}} Spanish]] colony, it handed the administration of the colony in 1975 to a joint effort by UsefulNotes/{{Morocco}} and UsefulNotes/{{Mauritania}} (the former had started claiming it since 1957). They couldn’t get along and eventually a war erupted; that’s when the Polisario Front, a liberation movement of the Sahrawis, nomads of mixed Arab-Berber blood, proclaimed the independence of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. When the war ended, Morocco took possession of much of the terrain and population, including half of the Sahrawis, while exiling the other half to UsefulNotes/{{Algeria}}, where they live in refugee camps to this day.

[[quoteright:325:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wi-150_9897.gif]]

That patch of land, usually known as the ''Western Sahara'', is the biggest patch of land currently non-self-governed in the world. It’s also known as the ''Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic'' by its self-proclaimed government. The largest city and ''de jure'' capital is Laayoune (also called El Aaiún), but the SADR does not control it, instead basing itself in a small oasis town called Tifariti, located some 300 km to the southeast.

The place itself is almost a DeathWorld with mostly desert, interrupted by the occasional highway that goes from town to town, its shores are too high and rocky to be used as beaches or ports and it doesn’t seem to have much oil (or at least, it’s not that accessible). The population is barely over 550,000 people, mostly Moroccans and Sahrawis, spread over a territory more than the size of UsefulNotes/{{Britain}}, making it among the least densely-populated places on the planet.

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, containing the aforementioned Laayoune, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, [[TheManBehindTheMan which Morocco claims to be the one pulling its strings]], which sees the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the latter attempted to take some territory off them (which had been transferred to them by UsefulNotes/{{France}}, their colonial power). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, the UsefulNotes/UnitedStates. No side is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer autonomy to the Sahrawis. This comes as no surprise since Spain, one of Morocco's two former masters (Spain controlled most of the Mediterranean coast of Morocco from 1912 to 1956), counts two autonomous communities in Morocco as part of its dominion to this day. An independent Western Sahara is recognized by less than half of the UsefulNotes/UnitedNations members, none of them part of the Security Council.

That patch of land, usually known as the ''Western Sahara'', is the biggest patch of land currently non-self-governed in the world. It’s also known as the ''Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic'' by its self-proclaimed government (exiled in Algeria). The largest city (and de facto "capital", were it but for the fact that it has no established government) is Laayoune (also called El Aaiún).

Originally a Spanish colony, it handed the administration of the colony in 1975 to a joint effort by UsefulNotes/{{Morocco}} and UsefulNotes/{{Mauritania}} (the former had started claiming it since 1957). They couldn’t get along and eventually a war erupted; that’s when the Polisario Front, a liberation movement of the Sahrawis, nomads of mixed Arab-Berber blood, proclaimed the independence of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. When the war ended, Morocco took possession of the terrain, reclaiming it as such.

The place itself is almost a DeathWorld with mostly desert, interrupted by the occasional highway that goes from town to town, its shores are too high and rocky to be used as beaches or ports and it doesn’t seem to have much oil (or at least, it’s not that accessible). The population is barely over 500,000 people, mostly Moroccans and Sahrawis.

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, [[TheManBehindTheMan which Morocco claims to be the one pulling its strings]], which sees the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the latter attempted to take some territory off them (which had been transferred to them by the French... don't ask why both countries didn't even bother to bury the hatchet and chew out France for the geopolitical mess they just got into). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, America. No side is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer autonomy to the Sahrawis. This comes as no surprise since Spain, one of Morocco's two former masters (Spain controlled most of the Mediterranean coast of Morocco from 1912 to 1956), counts various autonomous communities as part of its dominion to this day.

[[AC:The Western Saharan flag]]

That patch of land, usually known as the ''Western Sahara'', is the biggest patch of land currently non-self-governed in the world. It’s also known as the ''Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic'' by its self-proclaimed government (exiled in Algeria). The largest city (and de facto "capital", were it but for the fact that it has no established government) is El Aaiún (also called Laayoune).

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, [[TheManBehindTheMan which Morocco claims to be the one pulling its strings]], which sees the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the latter attempted to take some territory off them (which had been transferred to them by the French... don't ask why both countries didn't even bother to bury the hatchet and chew out France for the geopolitical mess they just got into). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, America. No side is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer autonomy to the Sahrawis. This comes as no surprise since Spain, Morocco's former master, counts various autonomous communities as part of its dominion to this day.

Originally a Spanish colony, it handed the administration of the colony in 1975 to a joint effort by UsefulNotes/{{Morocco}} and Mauritania (the former had started claiming it since 1957). They couldn’t get along and eventually a war erupted; that’s when the Polisario Front, a liberation movement of the Sahrawis, nomads of mixed Arab-Berber blood, proclaimed the independence of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. When the war ended, Morocco took possession of the terrain, reclaiming it as such.

->The flag uses all four Pan-Arab colors, and is similar to that used by Palestine, distinguishable only by the red crescent and star in the center, symbolizing Islam. Were the Polisario Front granted independence, the black and green stripes would be inverted.

That patch of land, usually known as the UsefulNotes/WesternSahara, is the biggest patch of land currently non-self-governed in the world. It’s also known as the UsefulNotes/SahrawiArabDemocraticRepublic by the self-proclaimed government (exiled in Algeria). The largest city (and the one we would normally call “capital”, if it weren’t for the fact that it has no established government) is El Aaiún (also called Laayoune).

Originally a Spanish colony, it handed the administration of the colony in 1975 to a joint effort by UsefulNotes/{{Morocco}} and Mauritania (Morocco had started claiming it since 1957). They couldn’t get along and eventually a war erupted; that’s when the Polisario Front, a Sahrawi national liberation movement, proclaimed the independence of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. When the war ended, Morocco took possession of the terrain, reclaiming it as such.

The place itself is almost a DeathWorld with mostly desert, interrupted by the occasional highway that goes from town to town, its shores are too high and rocky to be used as beaches or ports and it doesn’t seem to have much oil (or at least, it’s not that accessible). The population is barely over 500,000 people, between Moroccans and Sahrawis, nomadic tribes of mixed Arab-Berber heritage.

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, [[TheManBehindTheMan which is seen as the one who pulls the strings of the Front]]. The Algerians see the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the Moroccans attempted to take some territory on their border (which had been transferred from Morocco to Algeria by the French... don't ask why both countries don't forget about that whole business and gang up on the French). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, by America. None of them is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer the status of autonomous community within the kingdom. This comes as no surprise since Spain, Morocco's former master, counts various autonomous communities as part of its dominion to this day.

[[AC:The Western Saharan flag]]\\
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/125px-Flag_of_the_Sahrawi_Arab_Democratic_Republic_svg_3001.png

[[AC:The Western Saharan flag]]
http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/100px-Flag_of_Western_Sahara_5346.png

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, [[TheManBehindTheMan which is seen as the one who pulls the strings of the Front]]. The Algerians see the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the Moroccans attempted to take some territory on their border (which had been transferred from Morocco to Algeria by the French... don't ask why both countries don't forget about that whole business and gang up on the French). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, by America. None of them is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer the status of autonomous community within the kingdom.

The place as of today is divided between a zone controlled by Morocco (next to the shore) and a zone controlled by the Polisario Front (the inland part). The Moroccan part is by far the more heavily populated, and the Moroccan government has been working like hell to develop the region and endear it to the government in Rabat. The Front is backed by Algeria, which is seen as the one who pulls the strings of the Front. The Algerians see the conflict as part of a wider grudge against Morocco that started when the Moroccans attempted to take some territory on their border (which had been transferred from Morocco to Algeria by the French... don't ask why both countries don't forget about that whole business and gang up on the French). Morocco, on the other hand, is supported by France and, occasionally, by America. None of them is willing to back down, though Morocco is willing to offer the status of autonomous community within the kingdom.