The UN’s 1 November statement confirms that MINURSO’s mandate expired at midnight on 31 October, operations ended and a smaller team began an orderly liquidation process; it also says the Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy will continue diplomatic work. UN Security Council Resolution 2797 (2025) set the mandate’s expiry at 31 October 2026. The Associated Press independently reports the competing draft resolutions, their failure and the positions taken by Morocco, the Polisario Front and Algeria; Reuters reported the Council vote on 30 October. The photo search found AP and Getty event images offered through licensing links, and UN Photo material whose usage guidance requires prior written permission for reproduction; none is used. The lead image is a 1 February 2019 archive photograph of MINURSO vehicles in Laayoune, and the inline image shows a Sahrawi refugee-camp settlement in Tindouf photographed in 2012. Neither image depicts the 2026 wind-down or current conditions. Both images are original CC-licensed contextual photographs, resized proportionally and re-encoded for the site without cropping or content edits; credits, licenses and modification details are provided with each.
Operations ended; liquidation has begun
The United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara, known as MINURSO, began winding down on Nov. 1 after its mandate expired at midnight the night before. The Security Council had not agreed on a renewal. The UN says a smaller team will oversee the orderly return or disposal of equipment, while the Secretary-General’s Personal Envoy, Staffan de Mistura, will continue efforts toward a political settlement.
At the end of its mandate, MINURSO had its headquarters in Laayoune, nine team sites on both sides of the berm and a liaison office in Tindouf, Algeria. The UN said it had about 200 civilian staff, military observers and staff officers from more than 35 countries. The Secretary-General warned that the security situation remained concerning and urged all parties to avoid steps that could raise tensions.
A divided Security Council did not renew the mandate
The Council’s failure followed a dispute over two competing proposals. Russia vetoed a U.S.-drafted text on Oct. 30. A Russian draft to extend the mission for another year then failed to win the required support. The disagreement left MINURSO without a mandate when its existing authorization expired on Oct. 31.
The U.S. proposal would have backed Morocco’s autonomy plan as a basis for negotiations and changed the mission’s role. Moscow said the text was one-sided. Morocco welcomed the non-renewal, while the Polisario Front and Algeria criticized it, according to the Associated Press. The competing positions underline that the Council vote did not settle the territory’s political status.
The promised referendum never took place
The Security Council established MINURSO in 1991 after Morocco and the Polisario Front accepted a settlement plan that included a ceasefire and a referendum on self-determination. The vote never happened: the sides could not agree on who would be eligible. Morocco administers most of the territory; the Polisario seeks independence for it.
The ceasefire frayed in 2020 and the UN has since described hostilities as having resumed. MINURSO’s departure removes the mission’s field presence for monitoring and reporting, but the UN says its political work will continue through the Secretary-General’s envoy. No agreement resolving the dispute had been announced as the liquidation period began.
Sources
4 references
- United Nations PeacekeepingWestern Sahara: UN “stands ready” to keep supporting peace efforts as MINURSO mission endsPrimary source for the mandate expiry, end of operations, liquidation process, mission footprint and the UN’s continuing diplomatic role. · 2026-11-01
- Associated PressUN’s peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara ends after 35 years following US-Russia standoffIndependent reporting on the Council’s failed votes, regional reactions, the mission’s referendum role and the unresolved dispute. · 2026-11-01
- ReutersCompeting US, Russia resolutions on Western Sahara defeated in UN Security CouncilIndependent report on the 30 October Security Council votes and the competing proposals before the mandate expired. · 2026-10-30
- United Nations Digital LibrarySecurity Council Resolution 2797 (2025)Primary resolution extending MINURSO’s mandate through 31 October 2026. · 2025-10-31
