Algeria accuses Morocco of ‘assassinating’ civilians

Algiers: Algeria’s special envoy for the Western Sahara on Sunday accused Morocco of "assassinations targeting civilians" outside its "internationally recognised borders", following a recent drone attack in the disputed territory, state media reported.

Moroccan authorities "carry out acts of war... and commit extrajudicial assassinations targeting civilians" in the Western Sahara, Amar Belani said, quoted by the official APS news agency. Alleged attacks have been undertaken "using sophisticated weapon systems outside (Morocco’s) internationally recognised borders", Belani added.

The Western Sahara dispute pits Morocco against the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, which fought a war of independence with Rabat from 1975 to 1991. Last week, a Sahrawi website close to the Polisario said a man was killed and a child was wounded when a drone attack targeted a family in a civilian vehicle.