Official relations between the two countries of Palestine and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (Western Sahara) do not exist, being as neither country is fully recognised internationally. Despite this, there are informal connections.[1]
George Habash, one of the founders of Palestine's PLO, met with Brahim Ghali in 1979 and indicated solidarity with the Western Saharan cause.[2] Both countries share similar styles of struggling, including conducting guerrilla warfare, against both Israel and Morocco.[5]
In recent years, fears of growing Palestinian–Sahrawi contact prompted the Moroccan authorities to censor them, allying with a number of groups that opposed any alliance. In 2016, the Palestinian Solidarity Committee with Western Sahara was banned from entering Gaza by Hamas.[2]
The 2020 Israel–Morocco normalization agreement later laid speculations on deepening future relations between Palestine and the SADR, amidst censorship.
2023 Israel–Hamas war
On 10 October 2023, the Polisario Front expressed support for the Palestinian people.[6] On 15 October, Sahrawi Ambassador to Algeria, Abdelkader Taleb Omar, met with the PFLP political representative to Algeria, Nader Qaisi, at the Sahrawi Embassy in Algiers.[7] SADR was among the countries that condemned Al-Ahli Arab Hospital explosion.[8]