Algeria commemorated World Africa Day, celebrated annually on May 25th by the United Nations, by defending the Polisario Front. «On this day, we cannot ignore the suffering of a brotherly people occupied in the last African colony, Western Sahara», said Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf, according to a speech delivered on his behalf by Secretary General Lounès Magramane. The Minister called for a «peaceful resolution that respects the right to self-determination of the Sahrawi people», a right he described as «fundamental». The United Nations designated May 25th as World Africa Day to commemorate the founding of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1963. The OAU's creation stemmed from a project launched in Casablanca, Morocco, in January 1961, predating the formation of the Polisario Front in 1973.
