Yearbook 2007
Western Sahara. Since the United Nations Security Council
in April had voted through Resolution 1754, which required
Morocco and the Western Sahara Independence Movement
Polisario to launch unconditional talks on the V. conflict,
the parties met for the first time in over ten years on June
18-19 in direct talks. The meeting, which also included
representatives of Algeria and Mauritania, was held outside
New York under the leadership of UN Special Envoy Peter Van
Walsum. The parties, which met again in August, were allowed
to take part in the UN's assessment of eg. V's natural
resources and local administration. Confidence-building
measures were discussed. All parties were said to agree that
the current situation was "unacceptable", but nothing leaked
about any concrete progress.
Western Sahara - El Aaiun
El Aaiun
El-Aaiún, al-yUyūn, capital of Western Sahara; 196,500 residents
(2010). El-Aaiún was the capital of Spanish Sahara in 1940–76. The Arabic name
means 'water sources' and refers to the water supply of the city from
surrounding oases.
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