Morocco asks U.N. to remove 84 staffers from West Sahara mission - source

By Aziz El Yaakoubi RABAT (Reuters) - Morocco has asked the United Nations to remove 84 international staff members from its Western Sahara mission after U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon made what it called unacceptable remarks about the territory, a Moroccan official source said on Thursday. The diplomatic furore over Ban's comments has evolved into the worst dispute between the North African kingdom and United Nations since 1991 when it brokered a 1991 ceasefire to end a war over the Western Sahara and sent in MINURSO, the U.N. mission. Rabat accused Ban last week of no longer being neutral in the conflict, saying he used the word "occupation" to describe Morocco's annexation of the region at the centre of a struggle since 1975, when Morocco took over from colonial power Spain. Read More http://ift.tt/1PdTknR