After the escalation of tensions between Spain and Morocco, it is the Iberian kingdom which gives in. Faced with the thousands of migrants in Ceuta, as well as the recall of the Moroccan ambassador to Rabat, the Spanish court today summoned Brahim Ghali.
It seems that Morocco has won the standoff between it and Spain. After a diplomatic crisis between the two countries, Spain will sacrifice Brahim Ghali to restore relations with Rabat. The leader of the Polisario Front had joined Spain at the end of April to be treated there against the Covid-19. The Sahrawi rebel leader, openly supported by Algeria, is said to have made the trip aboard an Algerian plane.
The combination of the two facts had pushed Morocco to reprimand the Spanish ambassador Ricardo Diez. According to the Moroccan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Spain would have acted in a manner "incompatible with good neighborliness", declared Nasser Bourita. For his part, Spain replied by maintaining silence as to the development of the Brahim Ghali affair. On the Moroccan side, thousands of migrants, including more than 1000 minors, docked in Ceuta. In the impossibility of repatriating the minors, and the difficulty of welcoming other migrants, Spain has multiplied cries of distress. May 18, Morocco has recalled its ambassador to Spain.
Brahim Ghali remembers the good memories of Algiers
So, faced with this unprecedented escalation, Spain decided to sacrifice Brahim Ghali on the altar of its diplomatic failure. This offering adds to a long list of Spanish woes in Africa. As a reminder, the Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, concluded an African tour in April. During the journey of "El Guapo" - the beautiful - he discussed the "migration crisis" with the Senegalese president. He also has visited Ghana, among others. The fact of having passed Morocco in his tour would also have annoyed Rabat.
After this series of discord, the Spanish Court decided today to summon Brahim Ghali to appear. According to a document supposedly consulted by the Reuters news agency, serious charges fall on him. Indeed, the leader of the Polisario Front has reportedly been accused of genocide, murder, terrorism, torture and kidnapping. Charges that Ghali refuted. The rebel leader, hospitalized in northern Spain, refused to sign the summons. He said he had to refer to the embassy from Algeria. However, being in the custody of the Spanish authorities, he could be forced to appear on June 1.
Nevertheless, it is interesting that Ghali declares he is protected by Algeria. Indeed, Western Sahara has been a point of contention between Morocco and Algeria for decades. North African neighbors have a strained relationship on all fronts. And with the worsening of this file, the intervention of Spain, Moroccan normalization with Israel, as well as Tebboune's latest statements, this is not likely to get better. Still, Spain is losing the musical chairs, no matter what.