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UPI
2 days ago
- Politics
- UPI
U.S. honors 72nd armistice of America's 'forgotten' Korean War
1 of 4 | Statues at the Korean War Memorial are seen a day before Veterans Day on November 10, 2017, in Washington, D.C. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo July 28 (UPI) -- The White House said Monday the United States will "steadfastly" safeguard its interests on the Korean Peninsula with "safety, stability, prosperity and peace" as the endgame. That message was delivered the day in which the nation honors the truce that ended America's involvement in the Korean War more than seven decades ago. It was a day that also served as a catalyst of the current divergent north and south Korean national ideologies. "We pay tribute to every American hero who ventured to unfamiliar lands to face some of the most gruesome combat in the history of our country," U.S. President Donald Trump said in a statement. The armistice agreement signing ended the bloody three-year conflict in northeast Asia in which 36,574 U.S. military service members, according to the U.S. Department of Defense, died out of nearly 2 million who fought in the bid to repel the advancement of communism in the region. "We spent 15 minutes or so honoring all those men and women who fought and died in Korea," Master of Ceremonies Bob Fugit said Monday in Wichita as locals gathered at Veterans Memorial Park for events to commemorate what some say is America's "Forgotten War." "That's been a war that everybody wants to forget, even more than Vietnam," Fugit told KAKE in Kansas. Though most might want to forget, there still have been some efforts to remember. In July 2022, the nation's capital saw the Korean War Veterans Memorial unveil its new addition along with a total renovation to coincide with that year's Armistice Day festivities in Washington. A DOD web portal for the Korean conflict lists volumes of stories in a live-running historic archive of events related to the conflict. "Today, we pause to remember the courage and sacrifice of the heroes who served during the Korean War," the department posted Sunday morning on X, adding that the "legacy of their resilience lives on." In June 1950, then-President Harry S. Truman said that those responsible for "unprovoked aggression" against South Korea during the so-called "forgotten" war "must realize how seriously the government of the United States views such threats to the peace of the world." In a UPI article on July 27, 1953, the day it was penned seven months after war hero general and eventual GOP icon Dwight D. Eisenhower assumed the presidency, it read in part: "The armistice documents ending the bitter, stalemated efforts of the Communists to seize all Korea by force were signed at 10:01 a.m. today in the truce village of Panmunjom." On Monday, the 33rd president's oldest grandson said he believes Korea is collectively labeled by historians as the "Forgotten War" primarily because of public sentiment at the time. "I think that has to do with fact that, although Americans were firmly behind my grandfather when he moved quickly to aid a beleaguered South Korea," Clifton Truman Daniel told UPI via email, "they quickly tired of a conflict that was perceived as being not our fight." Daniel, the son of acclaimed author Margaret Truman Daniel, is honorary chair at the Harry S. Truman Library Institute, a partner of the 33rd president's library and museum in Independence, Mo. It was "a war on top of a war, if you will," Daniel, 68, said of the times. "And it came with objectives that were new, in terms of warfare," he said, adding that it was "hard to define" at that point. Outside efforts have lingered on with hopes to one day reunite the two Koreas even as the north rejects any such idea. Meanwhile, officials pointed to Trump's visit in June 2019 as the first sitting U.S. president to walk next to communist North Korea's demilitarized zone. On Monday, the president said that in observing the day "we renew our resolve that forces of freedom will always prevail over tyranny and oppression." In its statement, the White House reiterated that South Korean and U.S forces remained "united" in an "ironclad" military alliance as the region circles around aggression by North Korean communist dictator Kim Jong-Un, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. "We honor the patriots who fought and died in Korea so that freedom might endure both on our land and beyond our shores," the president continued, vowing to "rebuild" the U.S. military, support veterans "and stand strong against forces of tyranny." In North Korea, its "Victory Day" is celebrated with great fanfare, and it is not uncommon to see large-scale military parade processions in the north's capital city Pyongyang, much like Trump's in June that rolled through the streets of Washington, D.C. But Trump said that, above all, "we proudly remember every American hero who shed their blood to defend our home, our heritage and our glorious way of life." "Their valiant legacy will never be forgotten," he said.
Daily Mail
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Horror of the Korean War revealed by 'forgotten' British veterans 75 years on: Bridges made from corpses, troops fighting without guns and Chinese soldiers blowing themselves up
Ken Keld is sitting in the lounge of his immaculate one-bed bungalow outside Scarborough, North Yorkshire. Aged 91, he is a gentle and softly spoken Yorkshireman who still walks a mile a day. Given his warmth, it is hard to place him into the events he is describing. 'The shelling seemed to stop dead, you could have heard a pin drop. Within seconds they're there on top of us, we're outnumbered five to one,' he says. 'They were fanatics, they'd jump in the trenches and blow themselves up. It was hand-to-hand combat, it was practically every man for himself'. The great grandfather-of-two is a veteran of the Korean War, a conflict which, over the course of three years, claimed the lives of 1,100 British soldiers - more than in the Falklands, Afghanistan and Iraq wars combined. As the world marks the 75th anniversary of the start of the war, MailOnline has tracked down Ken and two other British veterans of the war. All in their 90s, their stories shed light on a horrific conflict seldom taught in schools and one which, despite the enormous sacrifice of ordinary British conscripts, is nicknamed the 'Forgotten War'. Many young men who had been sent to fight were only there because of compulsory National Service; some were still teenagers. Ken Keld, 91, is a veteran of the Korean War. He spoke to MailOnline from his home in Scarborough, North Yorkshire. He remembers how Chinese soldiers would jump in trenches and 'blow themselves up' By the end of the war, up to three million civilians had been killed. But historians generally view the conflict as one of the major success stories for the West in the post-War era; defending democracy and ensuring the safety of the South Korean people. Sir Michael Caine's memories of fighting in the Korean War Sir Michael Caine was called up to fight in the Korean War after enlisting for compulsory National Service. He recalled his experiences in an interview with the Daily Mail in 1987. Commenting on the tactics employed by the enemy, he told of 'attack after attack, you would find their bodies in groups of four'. 'We heard them talking and we knew they had sussed us…Our officer shouted run and by chance we ran towards the Chinese. Which is what saved us; in the dark we lost each other,' he added. The actor, now 92, went on: 'I remember the boredom and the bull. 'I also remember the sheer naked terror of finding that I, a kid from the Elephant and Castle, actually had to go out into a paddy field, at night, while Chinese soldiers were trying to kill me.' At the end of the Second World War, Korea – previously occupied by the Japanese – was divided along the 38th parallel, an internal border between North and South based on a circle of latitude. Determined to bring the entire Korean peninsula under communist rule, Kim Il Sung, the founder of North Korea and grandfather of tyrant Kim Jon Un, invaded the South on the 25th June 1950. With the support of the Soviet Union and later, China, whose maniac dictator Chairman Mao saw the conflict as a threat to his own security, soldiers poured over the border as a United Nations coalition of 21 countries rallied behind the South's Republic of Korea Army (ROKA). The invaders quickly took the capital Seoul before a back-and-forth that would see both sides gain and lose territory in chaotic seesaw fashion. By August, British naval personnel and troops were on the ground supporting the US army. 'I'd never been abroad... there was a Cockney on my ship who had never seen the sea before', says fellow 91-year-old Mike Mogridge from his home in Henley, Oxfordshire, as he recalls his eight-week journey by ship to Korea. Peckham-born and bred, Mike had been called up for National Service by the Tower of London-based Royal Fusiliers in early 1952. Among his fellow recruits were East End gangsters Ronnie and Reggie Kray, who Mike knew from the boxing world. After storming out one day, the twins would go on to be dishonourably discharged from National Service. A certain Michael Caine found himself in the same regiment as Mike, too. In early 1953, following six weeks' training in Hong Kong and a stint at Pusan (modern day Busan) in South Korea, Mike - now aged 19 - found himself on The Hook, a strategic area near Panmunjom so named for its shape. There, British, American, Canadian, Turkish, Thai and Republic of Korea Army (Roka) forces had been facing down the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (PVA). Conditions were horrific. While winters plunged to -40°C, summers could hit 40C. As the bodies of dead Chinese and allied soldiers lay on the battlefield, the rats moved in. 'When you go to sleep, it was overrun with rats', Mike, who still goes to the gym three times a week, recalls. 'At first you'd brush them off, eventually you didn't bother, they were very big rats because they were feeding off the dead bodies.' Korea was a war fought largely at night, with fairly uneventful patrols into no-man's-land where the enemy would occasionally open up on their positions. Days were spent dodging mortar and sniper fire, which the allies returned with devastating effect. Artillery was the game of Brian Parritt. A 2nd Lieutenant of the 20th Field Regiment in the Royal Artillery, he had joined the Army in 1949 and passed out of Sandhurst in February 1952. Having arrived in Korea that December, Brian was tasked with shelling enemy positions across The Hook. Located on a back line, his artillery pummeled the Chinese with VT shells that would explode above ground and devastate units of Chinese soldiers. Brian, now 94, was Mentioned in Despatches for his exploits on The Hook, a map of which hangs in his house. It is stained with his own blood following a mine incident that killed three men and blew him into the air. But Brian is keen to downplay his role in Korea. He instead highlights his superiors, three of whom had served in the Second World War and, as luck would have it, were sent to Korea just five years after the end of the war. 'They'd tell the men, "you think this is tough, son? You should've seen Normandy"', Brian recalls. He adds: 'There was great respect for them, there is no bull******** when you know your Sergeant Major had fought his way from El-Alamein, up through Italy and on to Monte Cassino.' Conditions were tough, Brian admits. 'It was bloody cold. By the time you made a cup of tea and raised it to your lips, it would get stuck to them,' he said. When a Chinese defector called Hua Hong, who had once fought against Chairman Mao's Chinese forces as a sergeant in Chiang Kai-Shek's nationalist army, was captured by allied soldiers, he revealed how a major offensive to take The Hook was being planned by the PVA. 'He knew everything, all the details of the attack, apart from the date', Brian says from an office filled with ephemera from a 37-year career in the Army. The Chinese, who had already been practicing the attack, had tried twice in the autumn of 1952 to seize The Hook but failed after being held back first by the US Marines, then by the legendary Scots of The Black Watch. It was during those battles where the allies witnessed the true horror of Chinese 'human waves', sent forward in their thousands to be mowed down before more elite units would follow through. Some of those in the first waves were unarmed and, when killed, were used as corpse bridges over barbed wire by the units which followed behind. 'When the Chinese attack, they come in three waves, one to destroy, one to take and one to hold, with tremendous numerical strength, and our artillery start to shell them... They lost hundreds before they even got to us', Mike grimly remembers. Following Hong's revelation of a third planned offensive, the allies were prepared for what was to come. It is estimated that around 9,000 PVA shells hammered allied positions on The Hook between May 19th and 28th. The allies returned as many in a volley of artillery which devastated the land. Ken Keld and his comrades from the Duke of Wellington's Regiment had been sent up to the frontline to relieve the Black Watch earlier that month. In position, he was the forward most platoon at The Hook. 'We were the ones going in first', he says. At around 8pm on May 28, 1953, following days of shelling by the PVA and the allies, the battlefield fell silent. In the distance, the sound of Chinese bugles rang out. That only meant one thing. As Ken, then 19, looked up from his position, he could see wave upon wave of Chinese soldiers coming towards him. Moments later, 'all hell broke loose'. 'There were just waves of them coming... The tanks would put on their spotlights and you could see Chinese running down hillside, so they started on them with the machine gun', he says. 'The Chinese didn't all have weapons, they picked weapons up from someone who had been killed.' At the back of the battle, Brian was pounding the Chinese positions with artillery fire. 'It was a most intense battle', says Brian, 'the barrels of the guns were red hot. 'Someone put a damp towel over a gun and it caught fire, it was an exhilarating experience'. As the Chinese edged closer, the fighting became more and more vicious. Ken, while holding them off, was running out of ammunition. Within moments, the Chinese had stormed his trench. 'We were in the trenches and they were just dropping in, they're blowing themselves up and whoever's with them... our number two Bren gunner Mick Connor was just mowing 'em down until he was killed himself.' 'It was practically every man for himself, it was more or less back-to-back, covering up for your other man, it was chaos.' Ken was pushed back into the tunnels which had been dug by the Black Watch before the Chinese ordered their surrender, promising good treatment. Recounting what the Britons replied to the surrender demand, Ken laughs and says: 'The second word was "off".' 'We were in there when they blew the ends in, all you could hear was thumping of things, Chinese voices, all you are thinking about is how long we're going to be here, are we going to be eating rice three times a day as prisoners!' With Ken and his comrades buried alive in the tunnel with just a Sten gun and one grenade, the Duke's outside launched a heroic counter offensive on the Chinese trenches. By 3.30am, they had taken control of The Hook. It was a resounding victory but one which had come at a devastating cost. By the end of the Battle of The Hook, just 17 out of 45 men in Ken's Duke of Wellington's platoon had survived. Among the dead was his friend from back home in Yorkshire, Dennis Smith, aged just 19, whom he points out in his 'In Memoriam' book. Around 2,000 PVA soldiers had been killed or wounded in just seven hours of human wave attacks and suicide missions. The Hook was a 'mess', Ken says, adding: 'We were offered a meal but there were so many bodies we didn't want it. 'The worst of all was the stench, buried, decayed, limbs and bodies. There had been so much fighting, it was like being sent to death row.' Ken was sent to a rear position following the battle of The Hook and Mike's Royal Fusiliers - who had been at the battle but in a rear position - took over. A month later on July 27, the truce, now known as The Korean War Armistice, was signed at Panmunjom, where the modern-day Demilitarized Zone now stands separating North and South Korea. When news of the truce got out, Brian heard the Fusiliers in their trenches singing Vera Lynn's 'There Will Always Be an England'. The rest of the battlefield soon joined in. As well as the 1,100 British dead, there were 3,000 wounded, and more than 1,000 missing or taken prisoner. For all of the horrors of Korea, the three men hold no hatred towards their former enemy. For Ken - who in 2023 received an MBE for his work with Korean War veterans - he respects the bravery of the Chinese on the battlefield, noting that on balance they were 'good soldiers'. For Brian, humanity shone through when, towards the end of the war, he met two Chinese soldiers in no-man's-land. They shook hands and took photos. He says: 'Having seen the consequences of war, I believe in jaw jaw before war war".' For a former Brigadier who spent nearly four decades in the Army, and whose service in Cyprus and Northern Ireland with the Intelligence Corps earned him an MBE and CBE respectively, it is a seismic comment. Korea, for Brian, was a resounding success and a victory which is still appreciated by South Koreans to this day. But it was the reception that met British soldiers on their return to Britain in 1956 that all three men struggled with. Mike, whose TV presenter daughter Fiona McLean starred in Grange Hill and whose son later joined the Army, explained: 'When I got back my father took me for a pint at our local, I remember one of his mates asking me "where have you been?" 'I told him I'd been in Korea, and he said, "oh, did you have a nice time?" And that was that.' Ken feels much the same about the 'forgotten' nature of Korea and the sacrifice made by ordinary Brits, many of whom were teenagers on National Service. He says: 'We had to pay for our own memorial, £40,000. You can't understand it. We've had to fight for everything to get recognition. I was getting shot at for a quid a week.' It is accepted among the three men that Korea became a forgotten war in part due it's sheer distance from Britain - 5,600 miles - but also thanks to a fatigue present amongst Britons so soon after the fight against Hitler. 'The appetite for more war was just not there', Mike admits. Brian, who is the only British soldier to be awarded the Order of Civil Merit (Moran) medal by South Korea, concludes: 'You'll go round the world looking at gravestones, a lot of them young National Service boys and there's a feeling, what the hell were we doing there? 'In historical terms it is not recognised what the army did in the post-War period. 'I do feel that in this period that the British Army tried to move from Colonialism to independence. I don't feel that is recognised.
Ya Biladi
05-02-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
«La Guerra Olvidada» : When the Moroccan Liberation Army nearly liberated the Sahara
The Ifni War, also known as the Forgotten War (La Guerra Olvidada), is a significant but often overlooked chapter in Morocco's struggle for complete independence from colonial powers. As noted by the renowned Moroccan politician Mohammed Ben Said Ait Idder, a figurehead of the nationalist movement and the Moroccan Liberation Army in his seminal work « Ṣafaḥat min malḥamat jaysh Al-taḥrir bi-l-janub al-maġribi » (Pages from the epic of the Liberation Army in southern Morocco) just one year after gaining sovereignty from France and Spain in 1956, Morocco found itself embroiled in an undeclared war with Spain that lasted from November 1957 to April 1958. The Moroccan Liberation Army (MLA), alongside Ait Baamrane tribes and other Sahrawi tribes, fought valiantly to liberate the Spanish-occupied territories of Ifni and Moroccan Sahara. Despite facing superior military might, the MLA managed to reclaim the northern part of «Moroccan Sahara, known as Cape Juby or the Tarfaya Strip, before the conflict ended. This article delves into the causes, key events, and aftermath of this pivotal war that shaped modern Moroccan history. Origins and historical background The roots of the Ifni War can be traced back to Spain's colonial presence in southwest Morocco during the 19th century. Spain had maintained control over the coastal enclave of Sidi Ifni since 1860 following the defeat of the Moroccan Sultanate in the Tétouan War (1859–1860), and gradually expanded into the Moroccan Sahara in the following decades. According to historian John Mercer in his book «Spanish Sahara», Spain's sovereignty over these territories gained European recognition at the Berlin Conference of 1884. In 1946, Spain consolidated its various coastal and interior colonies in the region under the banner of Spanish West Africa, as noted by Diego Aguirre in « La última guerra colonial de España: Ifni-Sahara (1957-1958) ». Upon regaining independence in 1956, Morocco wanted to recover all the historical pre-colonial Moroccan territories that had been taken from it by the imperial powers during the colonial era. As Michel Catala writes in his chapter « La reprise en compte par le Maroc indépendant des anciennes revendications territoriales » from the book «Pouvoirs anciens, pouvoirs modernes de l'Afrique d'aujourd'hui» King Mohammed V actively encouraged efforts to reclaim these territories, going so far as to personally fund Moroccan Sahrawi rebels in their demand for the return of Sidi Ifni to Morocco. After regaining its independence, Morocco sought to complete its territorial integrity and reclaim historical Moroccan lands. Bernabé López García, in his chapter « La descolonización de Ifni y el Sahara» from the book «España frente a la Independencia de Marruecos», notes that Allal el-Fassi (founder of the Istiqlal Party) argued that Morocco's independence was incomplete as long as «historically Moroccan» lands remained under foreign control, including Moroccan Sahara which had once been under Almoravid rule. This irredentist doctrine would become Morocco's official policy by 1958, adding to the urgency of the liberation struggle, as pointed out by Adolfo Gustavo Ordoño in his book «La guerra de Ifni». The year 1957 saw a dramatic escalation of tensions between Morocco and Spain over Ifni and Moroccan Sahara, violent clashes erupted against Spanish rule in Ifni beginning April 10, 1957, followed by civil warfare and widespread killings of Spanish loyalists. Spanish dictator General Francisco Franco, in response, dispatched two battalions of the elite Spanish Legion to Laayoune in June, as noted by Gerardo Mariñas Romero in his article «La Legión española en la guerra de Ifni-Sahara». Morocco countered by mobilizing its newly formed Royal Armed Forces near the borders of Ifni. Meanwhile, the Moroccan Liberation Army (MLA), though at odds with the monarchy over fully integrating into the Royal Armed Forces, received covert funding from Morocco to sustain its fight against Spanish colonialism, as pointed out by Mounia Bennani-Chraïbi in her chapter « Les luttes politiques de l'indépendance » from the book «Partis politiques et protestations au Maroc (1934-2020)». The MLA had a complex composition, consisting of Moroccan army dissidents and Sahrawi tribes from across Moroccan Sahara and Mauritania. According to Samia Mashat's edited volume « Coloniser, pacifier, administrer XIX-XX siècles », the MLA in the south was the only branch that refused to join the Royal Armed Forces in 1956, choosing instead to continue the armed struggle to recover pre-colonial Moroccan territory. Outbreak of war The Ifni War began in earnest on November 23, 1957, when MLA forces launched a surprise attack on Spanish positions. As documented by José Ramón Diego Aguirre in his book «La última guerra colonial de España: Ifni-Sahara, 1957-1958», the MLA cut communication lines, assaulted military posts and weapons depots in and around Ifni. Approximately 2,000 Moroccan fighters armed with automatic weapons laid siege to Sidi Ifni. The initial attacks inflicted heavy losses on the Spanish forces, with 55 dead, 128 wounded and 7 missing, as reported by Rafael Casas de la Vega in his book « La última guerra de Africa ». Although the Spanish managed to repel a direct assault on Sidi Ifni, they were forced to abandon several other towns in the region to Moroccan control, including the strategic settlement of Smara, as noted by Francesco Tamburini in his article « Ifni-Sahara, 1957-1958: una guerra coloniale dimenticata ». The MLA's offensive marked the official start of the Ifni War, prompting Spain to urgently deploy two additional Legion battalions to Sahara. Morocco's assault proved largely successful in the early stages. Within two weeks, the MLA and allied tribes controlled most of Ifni, effectively isolating inland Spanish units from the capital, Sidi Ifni. Simultaneous attacks were launched throughout Moroccan Sahara against Spanish garrisons and patrols. Battle of Edchera A pivotal engagement occurred on January 12-13, 1958, when MLA forces attacked the Spanish stronghold of Laayoune, defended by the 13th battalion of the Spanish Legion. The MLA was initially unable to overcome the Spanish Legion so they preferred to retreat. However, they regrouped and set up an ambush for the pursuing of Spanish troops near the town of Edchera (north of the city of Laayoune), as detailed by José Ramón Diego Aguirre in his article «Ifni, la última guerra colonial española». In the ensuing battle, the Spanish captain leading the pursuit was mortally wounded early on. The Spanish suffered heavy casualties, with 37 dead and 50 wounded, before ultimately withdrawing under covering machine gun fire, as reported by Ramiro Santamaría in his book « Ifni-Sahara, la guerra ignorada ». It was this precarious military situation that compelled Spain to accept a joint operation with France, codenamed Operation Ecouvillon. The siege of Sidi Ifni Emboldened by their early victories, enlarged Moroccan units attempted to besiege Sidi Ifni in hopes of provoking a popular uprising against Spanish rule. However, they drastically underestimated the city's formidable defenses. As Spanish Colonel Miguel Simón Contreras points out in his article «Ifni y Sahara, hoy», by December 9, Sidi Ifni had proven impenetrable with its extensive network of trenches, forward outposts, and a garrison of 7,500 defenders supplied by the Spanish Navy. The siege, which lasted until June 1958, was relatively quiet and bloodless as both Spain and Morocco focused their resources on the vast open desert terrain. Operation Ecouvillon : France intervenes Unable to repel the Moroccan offensive, Spain appealed to France for a joint military intervention, which became known as Operation Ecouvillon or Ouragan. As Elsa Assidon argues in her article « De l'opération 'Écouvillon' à l'intervention en Mauritanie », France had its own strategic interests in preventing the spread of anti-colonial insurgency to its sub-Saharan territories. Equally important was safeguarding French access to the region's natural resources and securing its economic investments. After months of covert planning, Operation Ecouvillon was officially launched on February 10, 1958. It involved an impressive coalition force of 9,000 Spanish troops and 60 planes fighting alongside 5,000 French personnel with 50 aircraft, all under the command of French General Bougraud, France justified its intervention by citing the pretext of an isolated skirmish between Mauritanian Goumiers and ALN rebels, according to Ana Torres García in her article «La negociación de la retrocesión de Ifni: contribución a su estudio». The operation began with a massive aerial bombardment on February 9, as French bombers targeted MLA positions in Tan-Tan and Seguia el-Hamra. The strikes, which included the use of napalm, killed an estimated 150 Moroccan fighters, as noted by Mohammed Bensaïd in his book «Ṣafaḥat min malḥamat jaysh Al-taḥrir bi-l-janub al-maġribi». On the ground, Spanish forces swiftly retook the cities of Laayoune and Tarfaya. The main offensive unfolded in two distinct phases: Phase 1 (Feb 10-20): Joint Franco-Spanish paratroopers, in a daring action called Operation Huracan, recaptured the strategic city of Smara. Despite fierce resistance from the MLA fighters bolstered by strong local tribal support particularly from the Ait Baamrane Berber tribes, Spain managed to reassert control over Semara and Dcheira, as described by Manuel Juan González in his chapter « La retrocesión de Ifni: opinión pública y oposición política » from the book «La presencia española en África: del 'fecho de Allende' a la crisis de Perejil». Phase 2 (Feb 20-24): The coalition forces dealt a crippling blow to the insurgents on February 21, eliminating some 300 fighters near the town of Aousserd. Faced with an overwhelming influx of superior troops and equipment, the battered MLA began to withdraw as clashes diminished in intensity, as recounted by Bernabé López García in « La descolonización de Ifni y el Sahara ». By February 24, 1958, Operation Ecouvillon was declared successfully concluded. Aftermath and legacy In the immediate aftermath of the Ifni War, Spain and Morocco signed the Cintra Agreement on April 1, 1958. As outlined by Ana Torres García in her article « La negociación de la retrocesión de Ifni: contribución a su estudio », the agreement stipulated that Spain would cede the Tarfaya Strip, located between the Draa River and Cape Juby, to Morocco. However, Spain retained control over Ifni until 1969, when it was finally returned to Morocco following UN pressure. One of the most notable leaders to emerge after the Ifni War was Ahmed Dlimi, better known as Commandant «Che Guevara», who earned his nickname because of his tactical prowess, distinctive beret and resemblance to the famous Argentine revolutionary, as mentioned by Gilles Perrault in his book « Notre ami, le roi ». Dlimi would later go on to command Moroccan troops in the 1963 Sand War border conflict with Algeria after being incorporated into the Moroccan Royal Army. The Ifni War also had significant political ramifications for the region. In Mauritania, those Reguibat tribesmen who rallied to the French cause during the conflict gained considerable influence, shaping the country's balance of power as it transitioned to independence in 1960. As Sophie Caratini argues in her book « La république des sables : anthropologie d'une révolution », many of the Mauritanian soldiers who fought in Ecouvillon would later form the core leadership of the new country's armed forces. In this sense, the Ifni War was a crucible that forged Mauritania's postcolonial military and political order. Although Morocco achieved victories against Spain at the beginning of the Ifni War, even reclaiming some vital areas in the Sahara, such as Dcheira and Smara, the intervention of France quickly turned the tide of the war in Spain's favor. This war was a crucial first step in the country's long struggle to restore its precolonial borders and assert its sovereignty in defiance of European powers. The «Army of Liberation in the South» never regained its former strength after Operation Ecouvillon, but the issue of «recovering the Moroccan Saharan territories» and completing territorial integrity remained alive. A decade later, Morocco finally secured the return of Ifni in 1969, and Spain ultimately withdrew from Western Sahara in 1975-1976 under pressure from the Green March.
