European airlines hit turbulence over Western Sahara flights

While France, through the voice of the President of the Republic, officially recognizes the Moroccanity of the Sahara, an event makes the Moroccan consulate in France jump: the journey of a French woman through France, Spain and Morocco, which, according to her, calls for the release of her husband, unjustly imprisoned in Morocco.

Ryanair caught in the crossfire as Western Sahara flights become flashpoint for Morocco-Polisario political conflict

Direct flights from two European capitals to a city in a bitterly disputed north African territory have become the latest battleground in the conflict between a rebel group and Morocco. Low-cost airlines have opened routes linking Madrid and Paris to Dakhla in Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony largely controlled by Morocco but claimed for decades by the Algeria-backed Polisario Front. Questions over the legality of the flights have thrown …

European airlines hit turbulence over Western Sahara flights

Direct flights from two European capitals to a city in a bitterly disputed north African territory have become the latest battleground in the conflict between a rebel group and Morocco.

Ryanair and Transavia are at the heart of a growing diplomatic and legal storm following the launch of new airlines to the disputed city of Dakhla, Western Sahara. These routes from Lanzarote and Madrid since January 2025 for Ryanair and from Paris-Orly for Transavia since 2023, have sparked a strong controversy, with Morocco asserting its control over most of the region and the Frente Polisario, supported by Algeria, fiercely opposing any forei…

The European tomato market is in turmoil: Morocco has overtaken Spain as the largest exporter of tomatoes to the European Union. Spanish farmers are talking about unfair competition, made possible by trade agreements in Brussels. It is striking that a significant proportion of Moroccan tomatoes come from Western Sahara – an area that has been annexed and colonised by Morocco since 1975. The indigenous population largely lives in exile, while the…

European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner said last Monday that there is “potential” for “more returns and more readmissions” of irregular immigrants from Morocco and considered cooperation between the European Union (EU) and the neighbouring country “crucial”. Brunner spoke with MEPs from the Committee on Civil Liberties of the European Parliament about the agreements with Morocco, Jordan and Turkey in the field of mig…