| Zemla Intifada | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofWestern Sahara conflict | |||
| Date | 17 June 1970 | ||
| Location | |||
| Goals | Independence of the territory | ||
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| Part of a series on the |
| Western Sahara conflict |
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| Background |
| Regions |
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| Peace process |
TheZemla Intifada (or the Zemla Uprising) is the name used to refer to disturbances of 17 June 1970,[1] which culminated in a massacre (where between 2 and 11 people were killed) bySpanish Legion forces in the Zemladistrict ofEl Aaiun,Spanish Sahara (modern-dayWestern Sahara).[2]
Leaders of the previous secret organizationMovement for the Liberation of Saguia el Hamra and Wadi el Dhahab (Harakat Tahrir) called for a demonstration to read out a petition of goals in response against theSpanish occupation of Western Sahara. On 17 June 1970, this petition was read to the Spanish governor-general of the colony, GeneralJosé María Pérez de Lema y Tejero, peacefully.[3]
After the demonstration was being dispersed by orders from Spain's governor-general, police moved in to arrest theHarakat Tahrir's leaders. Demonstrators responded to the police's actions by throwing stones at the police. The Spanish authorities called in theSpanish Legion who opened fire on the demonstrators, killing at least eleven people.[3]
In the days following the incident, the Harakat Tahrir's founderMuhammad Bassiri and otherHarakat Tahrir activists were hunted down by Spanish security forces. Bassiridisappeared injail after being arrested in 1970.[4]
The Zemla demonstration led to the end of the Harakat Tahrir. Hundreds of their supporters were arrested, while other demonstrators were deported fromSpanish Sahara.[3] The suppression of the Zemla demonstration pushed the Spanish Saharan anti-colonial movement into embracing armed struggle. The militant nationalist organizationPolisario Front was formed three years later.[4]
