Who Rules Western Sahara?
Western Sahara has no single head of state. Since the 1975 Madrid Accords ended Spanish colonial rule and triggered an immediate war with Morocco, Mauritania and the indigenous Polisario Front, the territory has been divided by a 2,700-km sand wall (berm) between two claimants. Morocco administers roughly 80% of the territory west of the berm — including the entire Atlantic coast, all significant towns, the phosphate mines at Bou Craa and the fishing ports of Dakhla and Laayoune. The Polisario-led Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) controls the arid eastern strip of “Free Zone” territory along the Algerian and Mauritanian borders and operates a government-in-exile from the Tindouf refugee camps in Algeria, where roughly 170,000 Sahrawi refugees have lived since 1976.
The United Nations continues to classify Western Sahara as a Non-Self-Governing Territory awaiting decolonisation. A UN mission (MINURSO) has been on the ground since 1991 under a ceasefire that collapsed on 13 November 2020, when Polisario units attacked Moroccan forces at the Guerguerat crossing and Rabat declared the truce void. Low-intensity hostilities along the berm have continued ever since, with periodic exchanges of artillery and drone strikes. The SADR is a founding member of the African Union (which it joined in 1984 as the OAU, precipitating Morocco’s withdrawal until 2017) and is recognised by 45 mostly African and Latin American states. It is not a member of the United Nations.
Brahim Ghali — President of the SADR
Brahim Ghali Hassena has served as Secretary-General of the Polisario Front and President of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic since 9 July 2016, when he succeeded Mohamed Abdelaziz — who had led the movement uninterrupted for 40 years — following Abdelaziz’s death in office. Ghali was re-elected by the Polisario’s 15th and 16th Congresses in 2019 and 2023. He was born on 19 August 1949 in Smara, then Spanish Western Sahara, into a Reguibat tribal family. A founding member of the Polisario in 1973, he was the movement’s first military commander during the 1975–1991 war against Morocco and Mauritania, later serving as defence minister and, from 2008 to 2016, as SADR ambassador to Algeria and then to Spain.
Ghali’s tenure is defined by three pressures: the 2020 ceasefire collapse and the resulting low-intensity war; a sharp shift in international recognition toward Morocco’s 2007 Autonomy Plan — since 2020 endorsed by the United States, since 2022 by Spain, since 2024 by France, and on 31 October 2025 tacitly by the UN Security Council, which “encouraged” Morocco’s plan as “serious and credible”; and the deepening dependence of the Tindouf camp population on humanitarian aid that has fallen below 60% of UN appeal requirements since 2022.
Morocco’s Southern Provinces
From Rabat’s perspective, the Moroccan-administered territory is the country’s “Southern Provinces,” fully integrated since 1975 and governed as three regions (Laayoune-Sakia El Hamra, Dakhla-Oued Ed-Dahab, Guelmim-Oued Noun) under the 2015 regionalisation law. King Mohammed VI is head of state; regional governors (walis) are appointed by royal decree. Morocco’s 2007 Autonomy Plan proposes devolved governance under Moroccan sovereignty with no referendum option on independence. Substantial infrastructure investment — a new port, Atlantic motorway, phosphate-export terminal and the first phase of the Dakhla-Atlantique megaport — has accompanied the political drive for recognition. A Moroccan census in 2024 put the population of the Southern Provinces at 1.15 million.
| Territory status | Disputed non-self-governing territory (UN list) |
|---|---|
| SADR President | Brahim Ghali (since 9 July 2016; age 76) |
| Moroccan head of state (administered area) | King Mohammed VI of Morocco |
| SADR declared | 27 February 1976 |
| Ceasefire | 6 September 1991 – 13 November 2020 (collapsed) |
| UN mission | MINURSO (since 1991) |
| Recognitions of SADR | Approx. 45 UN member states; member of the African Union |
| SADR de jure capital | Laayoune (de facto: Tindouf refugee camps, Algeria) |
Frequently asked questions
Who rules Western Sahara in 2026?
Western Sahara is disputed. Morocco controls roughly 80% of the territory west of a 2,700-km sand berm, administering it as its “Southern Provinces” under King Mohammed VI. The Polisario-led Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) controls the eastern Free Zone and operates from refugee camps in Tindouf, Algeria, under President Brahim Ghali.
Who is Brahim Ghali?
Brahim Ghali has been President of the SADR and Secretary-General of the Polisario Front since 9 July 2016. Born 19 August 1949 in Smara, he is one of the founders of the Polisario (1973) and is 76 years old as of April 2026.
Is Western Sahara a country?
Not by UN standards. The UN lists it as a Non-Self-Governing Territory pending decolonisation. The SADR is recognised by roughly 45 UN member states and is a member of the African Union, but is not a UN member.
What happened to the ceasefire?
The 1991 UN-monitored ceasefire held for 29 years. On 13 November 2020, Moroccan forces cleared a Polisario blockade at the Guerguerat border crossing with Mauritania; the Polisario declared the ceasefire void and has resumed low-intensity attacks along the berm. MINURSO remains in place.
Does the world recognise Morocco’s claim?
Recognition has shifted toward Morocco since 2020. The United States (2020), Spain (2022), Germany (2022), the Netherlands (2023), France (2024) and the UN Security Council in its 31 October 2025 resolution have endorsed Morocco’s 2007 Autonomy Plan as a “serious and credible” basis for a settlement.