Press reports published on Sunday, November 15, 2026, brought the file of military tension in the Sahara back to the forefront, after Mauritanian gold prospectors reported an exchange of artillery fire between the Royal Moroccan Army and the Polisario Front during the night from Saturday to Sunday, in areas close to the security wall, without any independent official confirmation regarding the details of these developments.
The Mauritanian website "Sahara Media," citing witnesses present in gold prospecting areas, reported that artillery and heavy shelling took place on both sides of the wall. It noted that the Polisario Front had, according to the prospectors' accounts, targeted the areas of Tarf Abdo and Tarf Mneina adjacent to the wall, while the same sources spoke of a response by the Moroccan army targeting the areas of Gleibat Al-Fula and Umm Aruysin, located to the east.
One of the prospectors stated, in a contact with the website's correspondent in the Mauritanian region of Tiris Zemmour, that about fifteen shells fell west of the prospecting sites in the Gleibat Al-Fula area, with no human casualties recorded according to his testimony. The website was unable to verify these accounts from an independent source, nor did it provide official confirmation from the Moroccan army or the Polisario Front regarding the occurrence of the shelling or identifying the party responsible for each operation.
The Gleibat Al-Fula area is located approximately 150 kilometers northwest of the Mauritanian city of Zouerate, and a few kilometers from the Mauritanian border. It is known for the presence of gold prospectors, some of whom operate outside Mauritanian borders in areas that the Mauritanian authorities and the "Maaden Mauritania" company have previously warned against accessing due to their security sensitivity.
These accounts come in the context of escalating tension around the security wall in the Sahara, amid field and political changes following the expiration of the mandate of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) on October 31, and the failure of the UN Security Council to renew its mandate. These developments raise concerns regarding the safety of civilians and prospectors located near areas witnessing military movements.
Despite the circulation of news regarding the shelling in Mauritanian and Algerian media, the absence of official military statements and independent field verification leaves the scale and outcome of the clashes unresolved. The published testimonies remain indicators that require follow-up and verification, and are not sufficient on their own to conclude that a widespread engagement took place or that military losses were registered by either party.
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