Tags : Western Sahara, MINURSO press review, UNO, propagande, disinformation,
Morocco has been accused of spying on the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) on at least two documented occasions: one in 2012, according to a report by the then UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, in which he accused Morocco of spying on MINURSO’s communications and preventing its members from accessing the local population.
The accusations of espionage against Morocco are not limited to MINURSO; they have also involved other actors, as evidenced in the case of espionage against politicians and activists.
In its espionage activities, Morocco not only used modern technology but also resorted to recruiting officers from the UN mission itself. Among them is the former press officer, Enrico Magnani, according to a Sahrawi diplomat who served in Italy. The goal was to shape MINURSO’s press review in such a way that it would become a tool for disseminating Moroccan propaganda about Western Sahara. This objective was achieved under Magnani’s « mandate. »
During the handover to the new MINURSO officer in charge of this review, Magnani gave instructions for Sahrawi and Algerian press media to have the least possible echo in this review in order to ensure the predominance of Moroccan colonial disinformation. Special emphasis was placed on the Maghreb Online website, in compliance with the directives of his Moroccan handlers. Maghreb Online is the most active and bothersome Sahrawi media outlet for Rabat.
#Morocco #WesternSahara #Polisario #Press #Propaganda #MINURSO #Enrico_Magnani