<P> The Spanish enclave of Ifni in the south became part of the new state of Morocco in 1969, but other Spanish possessions in the north, including Ceuta, Melilla and Plaza de soberanía, remained under Spanish control, with Morocco viewing them as occupied territory . </P> <P> In August 1974, Spain formally acknowledged the 1966 United Nations (UN) resolution calling for a referendum on the future status of the Western Sahara, and requested that a plebiscite be conducted under UN supervision . A UN visiting mission reported in October 1975 that an overwhelming majority of the Saharan people desired independence . Morocco protested the proposed referendum and took its case to the International Court of Justice at The Hague, which ruled that despite historical "ties of allegiance" between Morocco and the tribes of Western Sahara, there was no legal justification for departing from the UN position on self - determination . Spain, meanwhile, had declared that even in the absence of a referendum, it intended to surrender political control of Western Sahara, and Spain, Morocco, and Mauritania convened a tripartite conference to resolve the territory's future . Spain also announced that it was opening independence talks with the Algerian - backed Saharan independence movement known as the Polisario Front . </P> <P> In early 1976, Spain ceded the administration of the Western Sahara to Morocco and Mauritania . Morocco assumed control over the northern two - thirds of the territory, and conceded the remaining portion in the south to Mauritania . An assembly of Saharan tribal leaders duly acknowledged Moroccan sovereignty . However, buoyed by the increasing defection of tribal chiefs to its cause, the Polisario drew up a constitution, and announced the formation of the Saharawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), and itself formed government - in - exile . </P> <P> The Moroccan government eventually sent a large portion of its combat forces into Western Sahara to confront the Polisario's forces, which were relatively small but well - equipped, highly mobile, and resourceful . The Polisario used Algerian bases for quick strikes against targets deep inside Morocco and Mauritania, as well as for operations in Western Sahara . In August 1979, after suffering military losses, Mauritania renounced its claim to Western Sahara and signed a peace treaty with the Polisario . Morocco then annexed the entire territory and, in 1985 built a 2,500 - kilometer sand berm around three - quarters of Western Sahara . </P>

Who was involved in the process of independence of morocco