African victims of terrorist acts attributed to the Polisario will have the opportunity to voice their demands on December 2–3, 2025, in Rabat, during the first Conference on Victims of Terrorism in Africa. The announcement was made by Morocco's Foreign Minister, Nasser Bourita, on Thursday, September 25, in New York, during his participation in the Ministerial Meeting of the Group of Friends of Victims of Terrorism, organized at the UN headquarters in partnership with Iraq and Spain. The upcoming conference «will mark a turning point in the international approach to supporting victims on the continent», Bourita said. He also reaffirmed «Morocco's commitment to promoting the rights and protection of victims of terrorism, particularly in Africa, where nearly 60% of the world's victims are recorded». At the 38th Ordinary Summit of the African Union last February in Addis Ababa, Morocco took a major step toward having the Polisario listed as a terrorist organization on the continent, or at least condemned for human rights violations. In its final declaration, the AU summit «requested the Department of Political Affairs, Peace and Security to compile a comprehensive list of leaders of armed and terrorist groups in Africa responsible for crimes against refugees and internally displaced persons, and to prosecute those who commit, encourage, finance, or facilitate such crimes». If implemented, this resolution could encourage refugees to testify about abuses suffered in the prisons of armed groups. In the case of the Polisario, not only Sahrawis and soldiers of the Royal Armed Forces (FAR) have been victims of violations, but also Mauritanians, cases largely overlooked by human rights organizations. On Tuesday in New York, Bourita also met with U.S. Congressman Joe Wilson, co-author of a bill presented to Congress seeking to place the Polisario on the U.S. list of terrorist organizations. Since December 15, 2021, Morocco has hosted the headquarters of the United Nations Office for Counter-Terrorism and Training in Africa.
