King Mohammed VI reaffirmed, on Wednesday,Morocco's commitment to pursue its "extended hand" policy in order to achieve full reconciliation between the parties concerned by the Sahara dispute.

A ministerial delegation chaired Friday at Laayoune, the demolition of the last al-Wahda unhealthy encampments, announcing the completion of the resettlement of these settlements’ residents and their access to property within a global momentum aimed at improving the lives of people.

The UN Secretary General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, received on Friday, at the UN headquarters in New York, a Moroccan delegation composed of MM. Taieb Fassi Fihri, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, and Mohamed Yassine Mansouri, Executive Officer of Studies and Documentation, accompanied by the permanent representative Ambassador of the Kingdom at the UN, M. El Mostafa Sahel.

The United Nations affirmed Friday that Mr. Peter Van Walsum is still the UN mediator concerning the Sahara issue and that “his status has not changed”.

The Secretary General of the Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs (CORCAS), Dr. Maouelainin Ben khalihenna Maouelainin, received on Friday July 18th, 2008, at the Council headquarters, a delegation of central African journalists.