The vote on the draft resolution on the Sahara has been delayed by the UN Security Council to allow the Polisairo separatist militias to withdraw from the Guerguarat buffer strip on the borders with Mauritania. The Polisario has been blamed for simmering tension in the region by maintaining troops in the buffer strip, which, under the 1991 agreement, should remain demilitarized. The in-extremis decision by the Polisario to withdraw from the area has prompted a delay of the UN Security Council vote of a new resolution on the Sahara. UN Secretary General had previously reiterated his call for an immediate retreat of the Polisairo from the Guerguarat buffer strip in his report to the UN Security Council. He expressed support for the negotiations parameters launched by the UN Security Council since 2007 in order to reach a mutually acceptable political solution in good faith.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 28, 2017 16:07 UTC