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Western Sahara (EH in ISO 3166-1) is a region of northwestern Africa, bordering Morocco on the north, Algeria on the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean on the west. The largest city is El Aaiún (Laayoune), containing 90% of the population. Whether it is part of Morocco or is the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), is disputed. At present it is largely occupied, and entirely claimed, by Morocco, but this claim is far from universally recognized and in fact a majority of other nations do not recognize the Moroccan claim. In the peace plan a future Western Sahara Authority (WSA) is envisaged. Western Sahara is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, with some rankings listing it as the least dense.
HistoryMain article: History of Western Sahara Morocco occupied the northern two-thirds of Western Sahara (formerly Spanish Sahara) in 1976, and the rest of the territory in 1979, following Mauritania's withdrawal. A guerrilla war carried by the Polisario Front contesting Rabat's sovereignty ended in a 1991 cease-fire; a referendum on final status has been repeatedly postponed. The 1991 peace accords included an agreement on the carrying out of a referendum among the indigenous population. The referendum was planned to give the population the option between independence or inclusion to Morocco. The referendum has, however, to this date not been carried out due to conflict over who is entitled to vote. PoliticsMain articles: Politics of Western Sahara The legal status of the territory and the question of its sovereignty is unresolved; the territory is contested by Morocco and Polisario Front. See also Foreign relations of Morocco, Foreign relations of Western Sahara  GeographyMain article: Geography of Western Sahara Western Sahara is located in Northern Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Mauritania and Morocco. It also borders Algeria to the northeast. EconomyMain article: Economy of Western Sahara Western Sahara has few natural resources and lacks sufficient rainfall for most agricultural activities. Its economy is centred around nomadic herding, fishing, and phosphate mining. Most food for the urban population must be imported. All trade and other economic activities are controlled by the Moroccan government. Incomes and standards of living are substantially below those of Morocco. DemographicsMain article: Demographics of Western Sahara  As of July 2004 there are an estimated 267,405 people living in the territory of Western Sahara, most of the Sahrawi nationality. They speak Hassaniya Arabic, Moroccan Arabic and Spanish. The main religion is Islam. From the CIA World Factbook 2004 See also
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