According to many sources in agreement, the Polisario Front like Morocco should send a negotiators team « reduced to the strict minimum » to take part in the informal round which would be held in New-York in the coming days, under the leadership of the American mediator for the Western Sahara, Christopher Ross. The suspicious death of Mahfoud Ali Beiba, the sudden support of the Polisario Police chief, Mustapha Salma Ould Sidi Mouloud to the Moroccan autonomy plan as well as the deep discord within the movement have obliged Algeria to appoint the Polisario delegation constituted only of « elements that one can depend on » (which means that they can not fail to their engagement towards the military security, or suddenly support the Moroccan autonomy plan).
On the Moroccan side, it is almost sure that it is Taieb Fassi Fihri, Minister of Foreign Affairs who would lead the delegation, even if whispers talked of the possible involvement of Taieb Cherkaoui, the Interior Minister, at the image of the Manhassett formal negotiations, where it was the former Interior Minister, Chakib Benmoussa, who led the debates on behalf of Morocco. On the Polisario side, the death of Mahfoud Ali Beiba poses a serious problem in terms of choosing the chief of the delegation, and has been the subject of a meeting held between the DRS executives (Algerian secret services –Polisario Secretary General, Mohammed Abdelaziz. The latter does not want to give too much responsibilities to the Front « young guard », personified by M’Hammed Kheddad, in charge of coordination with MINURSO, whose name is put forward to replace him. Thus, it is up to Brahim Ghali, Polisario representative in Algiers, to lead the delegation, which is suitable in all aspects taking into consideration Algiers’ invovlment at all levels in this issue.
