RABAT, Oct 29 — Four explosions late yesterday in the city of Smara in Morocco-controlled Western Sahara killed one man and injured three others, local authorities said.

The blasts damaged two houses, authorities said in a statement, without adding further details.

Morocco considers Western Sahara its own territory, but the Algerian-backed Polisario Front wants an independent state there.

In November 2020, Polisario said it had resumed its armed struggle.

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Most of the fighting was described by the UN as “low intensity”, and occurring mostly in the uninhabited eastern part of the Morocco-built security wall.

Morocco has said autonomy is the most it can offer to the territory as a political solution. The Polisario and its ally Algeria demand an independent state.

The UN Security Council has urged the parties to the conflict to seek a mutually acceptable solution.

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Israel was the latest country to recognize Morocco’s sovereignty over the territory in July, a move the US took in 2020.

Twenty-eight other countries - mostly African and Arab - have opened consulates in Dakhla or the city of Laayoune, in what Morocco sees as tangible support for its Western Saharan rule. — Reuters