Brahim Ghali is strategically maneuvering ahead of the upcoming Polisario congress, setting the stage for his own succession. In a calculated move, he has sidelined Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud Biadillah, a potential rival who could challenge his authority at the conclave, by appointing him as "ambassador" to Cuba. "This is a cushy exile for the Sahrawi leader, who has the backing of some of the youth in the Tindouf camps and major tribes, but not Algeria," a former Front member, now back in Morocco, told Yabiladi on condition of anonymity. Ibrahim Ahmed Mahmoud, also known as Grigao, is the brother of Mohamed Cheikh Biadillah, the former secretary-general of PAM and ex-president of Morocco's House of Councillors. Ghali had previously removed him from significant roles in intelligence and the coordination of the Polisario's armed militias. In retaliation to his marginalization, Grigao has openly criticized the "war" launched by the Polisario leader against Morocco on December 13, 2020. He cautioned in a June 2022 article about the Royal Armed Forces' expansion in the "liberated territories," expressing concern that it might become "an extension of the Moroccan Wall of Sands." With Grigao's relocation to Cuba, only Bachir Mustapha Sayed, the brother of the Polisario's founder, remains as a potential challenger to Brahim Ghali's leadership at the next congress, as he did in January 2023.
