The Hill News

The shocking kidnapping of European aid workers on October 23 from a Polisario camp in southwest Algeria is a grim reminder that the latest repercussions of the unrest in Libya are not limited to cries for reconciliation, justice, and greater economic equality. The unfinished regional agenda must include resolving the fate of refugees sequestered in camps in the area as well as enhancing regional security cooperationâ€"critical elements affecting stability throughout North Africa.
 
As North African countries struggle to respond to domestic demands for reform, refugees from the conflict in the Western Sahara have been largely overlooked. The lack of resolution of their future status provides opportunities for exploitation by terrorist and criminal organizations. In this context, the kidnappings further eroded the already deteriorating security situation in North Africa when ten of al-Qaeda’s local operatives slipped into the Polisario camp in Rabouni, Algeri! a and kidnapped two Spanish and one Italian aid worker.

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