Second Battle of Amgala

The Second Battle of Amgala, also called Amgala II or Amgala 2, took place on 14 February 1976 in the Amgala Oasis in Western Sahara. It pitted the Moroccan troops, who lost Amgala, to the forces of the Sahrawi People's Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Polisario Front, supported by the Algerian army.[2] According to Maurice Barbier, the Moroccan garrison in the city was entirely decimated.[1]

Second Battle of Amgala
Part of the Western Sahara War
Date14–15 February 1976
Location
Amgala, Western Sahara
26°26′48″N 11°30′53″W
Result Sahrawi victory
Belligerents
Polisario Front
 Algeria (support)		  Morocco
Commanders and leaders
El-Ouali Mustapha Sayed King Hassan II
Casualties and losses
Unknown Dozens of killed[1]
Location within Western Sahara

Background

This battle followed the first battle of Amgala, which pitted the Moroccan army against the Algerian army for the first time from 27 to 29 January 1976.

Battle

According to Maurice Barbier and Ahmed Baba Miské, the fighting took place during the night of February 14 to 15, 1976, with strong units attacking the Moroccan troops in the city after its recovery. Shortly after the start of the attack, Moroccan reinforcements left the town of Smara but were unable to counter-attack.[3]

According to the writer Ahmed Baba Miské, the Moroccan garrison was totally destroyed.[4]

Controversy over the presence of Algerian troops

According to the statements of King Hassan II, Algerian troops participated directly in the second battle of Amgala.[5] But at the time, “P.M.D.", a Journalist at Le Monde, considers "plausible" the Algerian version of an attack carried out only by the Polisario.[6]

According to the French political scientist Maurice Barbier, the operation was carried out only by the Polisario without the participation of Algerian soldiers.[1]

The two battles of Amgala raised fears of a confrontation between Morocco and Algeria, a prospect that gradually faded in April 1976.[7]

References
  1. Barbier, Maurice (1982). Le conflit du Sahara occidental. Harmattan. p. 189. ISBN 978-2-85802-197-0. Cette nouvelle tactique fut illustrée par la reprise d'Amgala dans la nuit du 14 au 15 février. L'opération fut menée par le seul Polisario sans participation de soldats algériens et elle anéantit la garnison marocain laissée à Amgala, faisant des dizaines de victimes. [This new tactic was illustrated by the revival of Amgala on the night of 14-15 February. The operation was carried out by the Polisario alone without the participation of Algerian soldiers and it destroyed the Moroccan garrison left in Amgala, causing dozens of casualties.]
  2. Mikaberidze, Alexander (2011). Conflict and Conquest in the Islamic World: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 96. ISBN 978-1-59884-336-1.
  3. La polémique continue entre Alger et Rabat sur la seconde bataille d'Amgala – Lemonde.fr
  4. Miské, Ahmed Bâba (1978). Front Polisario: l'âme d'un peuple : suivi d'un entretien avec Jean Lacouture (in French). Éditions Rupture. p. 274. ISBN 978-2-86220-004-0.
  5. "Hassan II adresse une mise en demeure à M. Boumediène". Le Monde.fr (in French). 1976-02-17. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
  6. Qui a repris Amgala? – Lemonde.fr
  7. "La tension entre Alger et Rabat est progressivement retombée". Le Monde.fr (in French). 1976-04-10. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
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