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Ifni War
Part of the Decolonisation of Africa
Borders of the Ifni territory before and after the war.
Date
23 October 1957 – 30 June 1958 (8 months and 1 week)
Location
Ifni, Spanish Sahara, Morocco
Result
Franco−Spanish military victory[1][2][3][4]
Moroccan political victory[5]
Treaty of Angra de Cintra[6]
Territorial changes
Areas of Ifni annexed by Morocco Cape Juby strip retroceded to Morocco by Spain Sidi Ifni retained by Spain until 1969
Belligerents
Spain
West Africa
France (1958)
Mauritania
Morocco
Liberation Army
Allied Sahrawi tribes
Commanders and leaders
Francisco Franco
Ben Hammu
Strength
15,300 men
10,300 Spanish troops
5,000 French troops
150 aircraft
30,000 men[7]
Casualties and losses
190 dead 500 wounded 80 missing[6]
800–1,000 dead[6]
7 civilian deaths
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Franco–Moroccan conflicts
First French colonial empire era
Larache expedition (1765)
Second French colonial empire era
Franco-Moroccan War (1844)
Bombardment of Salé (1851)
South-Oranese Campaign (1897–1903)
Conquest of Morocco (1907–34)
Zaian War (1914–21)
Rif War (1921–26)
Post-colonial conflicts
Ifni War (1957–58)
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Spanish–Moroccan conflicts
Imperialism
Conquest of Mehdya (1614)
Siege of Mamora (1681)
Siege of Larache (1689)
Siege of Melilla (1694–1696)
Sieges of Ceuta (1694–1727)
Siege of Melilla (1774–1775)
Tetuan War (1859–1860)
Rif conflicts
First Melillan campaign (1893–1894)
Second Melillan campaign (1909)
Battle of Wolf Ravine
Kert campaign (1911–1912)
Rif War (1920–1926)
Post-colonial conflicts
Ifni War (1957–1958)
Green March (1975)
Perejil Island (2002)
Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera (2012)
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15th century
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20th century
Morocco (1909)
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Morocco (1957–58)
Western Sahara (1973–76)
Western Sahara (1975)
Part of a series on the
Western Sahara conflict
Background
Spanish Sahara
Greater Morocco
Greater Mauritania
Moroccan Army of Liberation
Movement for the Liberation of Saguia el Hamra and Wadi el Dhahab
Polisario Front
Sahrawi National Union Party
Madrid Accords
Partition agreement
Regions
Saguia el-Hamra
Río de Oro
Southern Provinces
Tiris al-Gharbiyya
Free Zone
Politics
Annexation of Western Sahara
Political status of Western Sahara
Foreign relations of Morocco
Makhzen
Politics of the SADR
Royal Advisory Council for Saharan Affairs
Clashes
Ifni War
Zemla Intifada
Western Sahara War
First Intifada
Independence Intifada
Gdeim Izik
Arab Spring protests
2020–present clashes
Timeline
Issues
Refugees
camps
Sahrawi nationality
Green March
Moroccan settlers
Moroccan Wall
Human rights
Peace process
UN resolutions
UN visiting mission
UN referendum mission
ICJ Advisory Opinion
Settlement Plan
Houston Agreement
Baker Plan
Manhasset negotiations
Autonomy Proposal
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The Ifni War, sometimes called the Forgotten War in Spain (la Guerra Olvidada), was a series of armed incursions into Spanish West Africa by Moroccan insurgents that began in October 1957 and culminated with the abortive siege of Sidi Ifni.
The city of Sidi Ifni had been ceded to the Spanish Empire in 1860 at the end of the Hispano-Moroccan War. After Morocco achieved independence in 1956, it sought to claim Spain's remaining possessions in West Africa. Violent demonstrations against Spanish rule broke out in Ifni in April 1957, and in October Moroccan militias began converging near the territory. Moroccan forces attacked in November, forcing the Spanish to abandon most of the territory and retreat to a defensive perimeter around Ifni. Supplied by the Spanish Navy from the sea, the Spanish garrison was able to resist the siege, which lasted into June 1958. In Spanish Sahara, Moroccan units, now reorganised as the Moroccan Army of Liberation, engaged in heavy fighting with Spanish forces at El Aaiún and Edchera. By February 1958, a joint Spanish and French offensive had driven the Moroccans out of Spanish Sahara.
Hostilities ceased in April 1958 (although small skirmishes still occurred) with the Treaty of Angra de Cintra, signed by the Spanish and Moroccan governments, by which Cape Juby and most of the Ifni territory were transferred to Morocco. The city of Sidi Ifni remained in Spanish possession until 1969, when, under international pressure, it was relinquished to Morocco.
^Lingelbach, David. The Oligarchs’ Grip: Fusing Wealth and Power. ISBN 3111029328.
^Shillington, Kevin (2013-07-04). Encyclopedia of African History 3-Volume Set. p. 1019. ISBN 1135456704.
^Anyangwe, Carlson (2022-08-08). Contemporary Wars and Conflicts Over Land and Water in Africa. p. 213. ISBN 1666910376.
^H. Bowen, Wayne (2007-11-30). A Military History of Modern Spain: From the Napoleonic Era to the International War on Terror. p. 131. ISBN 157356723X.
^Anyangwe, Carlson (2022-08-08). Contemporary Wars and Conflicts Over Land and Water in Africa. p. 214. ISBN 1666910376.
^ abcSchwinghammer, Torsten (2018-04-24). Warfare Since the Second World War. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-28970-2.
^La Vanguardia, Sidi Ifni, la última guerra de Franco
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