New Bill Forces Decision on Polisario Front Terrorist Designation Within 90 Days, Tied to Morocco's Autonomy Plan

The Polisario Front Terrorist Designation Act is a foreign policy bill designed to force the U.S. government to formally decide whether to label the Polisario Front—a separatist group operating in Western Sahara and Algeria—as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and slap them with sanctions. Within 90 days of the bill becoming law, the Secretaries of State and Treasury must report to Congress on whether the group meets the criteria for both FTO designation and sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act and Executive Order 13224 (Sec. 4).

This push is driven by Congressional findings (Sec. 2) that heavily emphasize the Polisario Front’s alleged links to Iran—which the U.S. considers a state sponsor of terrorism—dating back to the 1980s. More recently, the findings cite reports of Hezbollah officers training Polisario fighters in 2018 and the group acquiring Iranian-made weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in 2022 and 2023. Essentially, Congress is saying, “We see troubling connections to groups like Iran, Hezbollah, and the PKK; now the Executive Branch needs to make a formal call on sanctions.”

The Mandate: What the White House Must Report

Beyond the 90-day sanction deadline, the Secretary of State has 180 days to deliver a comprehensive report to Congress (Sec. 3). This report must detail the Polisario Front’s leadership, military activities, and foreign government backing. Crucially, it requires a deep dive into the group’s relationships, funding, and support from Iran and Russia, as well as designated FTOs like Hezbollah, the IRGC, and the PKK. Finally, the report must analyze whether the group has intentionally targeted civilians in any attacks.

For regular folks, why does this matter? While this is a foreign policy bill, these designations can dramatically affect international relations and humanitarian aid. If the Polisario Front is designated an FTO, any person or organization providing material support could face severe penalties. This could complicate the delivery of aid to the Sahrawi refugee camps in Algeria, where the group is based, even if the aid is purely humanitarian.

The Presidential Escape Hatch: Negotiations as a Get-Out-of-Jail Card

Here’s where the bill gets interesting—and potentially subjective. Section 5 gives the President a clear waiver authority. The President can choose to skip the sanctions and designations outlined in Section 4 if they determine the Polisario Front is “genuinely trying to negotiate in good faith” to implement the autonomy plan for Western Sahara that Morocco proposed to the UN Security Council in 2007. This plan essentially grants the Sahrawi people self-governance under Moroccan sovereignty.

This provision is a huge political lever. It essentially ties the threat of U.S. sanctions directly to the Polisario Front’s willingness to negotiate on Morocco’s terms. The practical challenge here is defining “good faith.” That term is wide open to interpretation, giving the President significant leeway to use the threat of sanctions as leverage in diplomatic talks, regardless of the findings from the State and Treasury Departments. For the Sahrawi people who seek full independence, this bill puts immense pressure on their political representation to accept a compromise that falls short of their ultimate goal, or face severe U.S. penalties.