Abdelkader Taleb Omar

Abdelkader Taleb Omar عبد القادر طالب عمر
Prime Minister of the Sahrawi Republic
Incumbent
Assumed office 29 October 2003
President	Mohamed Abdelaziz Khatri Addouh (Acting) Brahim Ghali
Preceded by	Bouchraya Hammoudi Bayoun
Personal details
Born	1951 Laayoune refugee camp, Western Sahara
Political party	Polisario Front
Religion	Sunni Islam

Abdelkader Taleb Omar (Arabic: عبد القادر طالب عمر‎‎, ʿAbd āl-Qādar Ṭāleb ʿOmar; b. 1951) is the Prime Minister of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), in the framework of the government-in-exile proclaimed by the Polisario Front.^[1]

Career

Omar is a Polisario Front veteran who has lived in exile in the Tindouf province, Algeria since 1975. He has held several ministerial posts in previous governments, served as speaker of the Sahrawi National Council (the parliament in exile) in the 1995-1998 period,^[2] and also as Wali (Governor) of the Smara refugee camp, near Tindouf.^[3]

He was named to that post of Prime Minister by SADR president Mohamed Abdelaziz, in the framework of the XI General Popular Congress held in Tifariti on October 29, 2003,^[3] and re-appointed again to that post in early 2012.^[2]

Abdelkader was widely tipped to be the favorite to succeed Mohamed Abdelaziz, to the post of president in 2015, with the Algerian Département du Renseignement et de la Sécurité considered to be preferring him over other candidates. But Abdelkader ruled himself out, paving way for Brahim Ghali, who was serving as the ambassador in Algiers at that time, and was also considered to be close to the Algerian DRS to ascend to that post. ^[4][5]

Abdelkader is widely perceived as a liberal, arguing for a return of the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara to Sahrawi territories, as a preclude to the referendum, unlike many other Polisario Front leaders who would prefer an armed resistance against Morocco. ^[6][7]

References

1. "Government inspection committee observes progress of work at Ministry of Information". Sahara Press Service. 27 November 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
2. "Re-appointment of Mr. Abdelkader Taleb Omar as prime minister in the Saharawi government". Sahara Press Service. 1 January 2012. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
3. Western Sahara News October , Weeks 40 - 44 (28.09.-31.10.2003 ARSO, 29 October 2003
4. "Polisario: why the DRS co-opts Taleb Omar". Polisario Confidential. 19 June 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
5. "Polisario front reaches consensus on Ghali". La Vanguardia. 7 July 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
6. "Polisario: Mohamed Abdelaziz's Succession, No Surprise". Polisario Confidential. 2 June 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
7. "We hope return of MINURSO with specific agenda to organize self-determination referendum, says Sahrawi PM". Algeria Press Service. 2 May 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.