|
 AGADIR, Morocco (AP) - Hundreds of Moroccan soldiers held for decades by Western Sahara guerrillas were freed Thursday under a U.S.-mediated deal in a conflict over a vast expanse of mineral-rich desert.
Two U.S. military-chartered airplanes brought the 404 men to Agadir, a coastal city in southern Morocco a few hours after their release. Some had been held for up to 20 years by the Polisario Front at prison camps in Algeria's southwest desert even though fighting ended in 1991.
The guerrillas fought Morocco for years seeking independence for a vast expanse of mineral-rich desert, and the United States expressed hope the POW release would provide momentum for a settlement of the three-decade-old dispute.
|