Sahrawi People's Liberation Army

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Sahrawi People's Liberation Army
Commander in chief
President Brahim Ghali
Chief of StaffMohamed Wali Akeik
Personnel
Military age18
ConscriptionNo
Active personnel20,000–30,000
Reserve personnel50,000
Industry
Foreign suppliers Algeria
 Libya
Related articles
HistoryList of wars involving the SADR
Western Sahara conflict
RanksMilitary ranks of SADR

The Sahrawi

Tindouf camps undergo military training at age 18.[citation needed
] Women formed auxiliary units protecting the camps during war years.

Equipment

A Polisario tank division 2010
Eland armoured cars in the Polisario Museum
.

When it originally began the Anti-Spanish rebellion,

fighter jets, and helped compensate for the complete Moroccan control of the skies.[2]

One of the most innovative tactics of the SPLA was its early and extensive use of

AT-3 Sagger). The SPLA uses them in great numbers in order to overwhelm unprepared garrisoned outposts in rapid surprise strikes. This may reflect the movement's difficulties in obtaining original military equipment, but nonetheless proved a powerful tactic.[3]

On 3 November 2005, the Polisario Front signed the

landmines, and later began to destroy its landmine stockpiles under international supervision. Morocco is one of 40 governments that have not signed the 1997 mine ban treaty. Both parties have used mines extensively in the conflict, but some mine-clearing operations have been carried out under MINURSO supervision since the ceasefire agreement.[4][5]

Military equipment of the Sahrawi People's Liberation Army
Name Country of origin Quantity Notes
Tanks
T-55A  Soviet Union ~70 (Received from Libya).[6]
T-62 Obr. 1972 ~30
Armoured fighting vehicles
EE-9  Brazil ~19 (Received from Libya in the early 1980s).[6]
BRDM-2  Soviet Union ~12 (Received from Libya).[6]
Infantry fighting vehicles
BMP-1  Soviet Union ~35 (Received from Libya).[6]
Armoured personnel carriers
BTR-60PB  Soviet Union ~25 (Received from Libya).[6]
Towed artillery
122mm D-30  Soviet Union N/A (Received from Libya).[6]
Multiple rocket launchers
107mm Type-63  China N/A (Supplier uncertain; either Algeria or Libya).[6]
122mm 9P132 Grad-P  Soviet Union
122mm BM-21 'Grad' (Received from Libya).[6]
122mm
BM-11
  North Korea (Received from Libya in the early 1980s), (Not yet seen).[6]
122mm RM-70  Czechoslovakia
Mortars
120mm M-43  Soviet Union N/A (Supplier uncertain; either Algeria or Libya).[6]
160mm M-160
Anti-tank guided missiles
9M14 Malyutka  Soviet Union N/A (Supplier uncertain; either Algeria or Libya), (Not yet seen).[6]
9M111 Fagot (Supplier uncertain; either Algeria or Libya), (Documented by a few sources, not yet seen).[6]
Man-Portable Air Defence Systems
9K32 Strela-2  Soviet Union N/A (Received from Libya in the early 1980s).[6]
(Self-propelled) anti-aircraft guns
14.5mm ZPU-2  Soviet Union N/A (Mounted on Toyota pickup trucks), (Supplier uncertain; either Algeria or Libya).[6]
14.5mm ZPU-4
23mm ZU-23
23mm ZSU-23-4 'Shilka' (Supplier uncertain; either Algeria or Libya).[6]
Surface-to-air missile systems
9K31 Strela-1  Soviet Union ~3 (Received from Libya in the early 1980s).[6]
9K33 Osa ~2
2K12 Kub ~2
Radars
1S91 SURN  Soviet Union N/A (For 2K12 Kub), (Received from Libya in the early 1980s).[6]
P-12 (Received from Libya in the early 1980s) (Not yet seen).[6]
PRV-16

Tactics

The SPLA traditionally employed ghazzi tactics, i.e., motorized surprise raids over great distances, which were inspired by the traditional camel-back war parties of the Sahrawi tribes. However, after the construction of the Moroccan Wall this changed into tactics more resembling conventional warfare, with a focus on artillery, snipers and other long-range attacks. In both phases of the war, SPLA units relied on superior knowledge of the terrain, speed and surprise, and on the ability to retain experienced fighters.

Gallery

  • Military parade of the SPLA soldiers in 1980
    Military parade of the SPLA soldiers in 1980
  • Female soldiers in 1980
    Female soldiers in 1980
  • Sahrawi fighters, 1980
    Sahrawi fighters, 1980
  • Male soldiers in 1985
    Male soldiers in 1985
  • Army battalion in the Liberated Territories, 2005
    Army battalion in the
    Liberated Territories
    , 2005
  • Army weapons parked at the Museum of the People's Liberation Army
    Army weapons parked at the
    Museum of the People's Liberation Army

Notes

  1. ^ also romanized as Saharawi

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Military of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
  1. ^ "Editor Chris Brazier’s Journey Into Polosario Territory, Including His Trip Through A Cleared Minefield, A Visit To An Underground Hospital, And To A Guerrilla Army Base". New Internationalist.
  2. ^ "Moroccan Air Force at 50". Air Scene UK.
  3. ^ Michael Bhatia, "Western Sahara under Polisario Control: Summary Report of Field Mission to the Sahrawi Refugee Camps (near Tindouf, Algeria)". ARSO.org.
  4. ^ "genevacall.org". Archived from the original on 1 June 2006.
  5. ^ "genevacall.org". Archived from the original on 4 September 2006.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Oryx. "Desert Storm: Listing The Polisario's Inventory of AFVs". Oryx. Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sahrawi_People%27s_Liberation_Army&oldid=1218282713"