Under this programme, family members living in the Moroccan southern provinces visit their relatives in the Tindouf camps, in southwestern Algeria, and vice-versa.

    Morocco "denounces this new manifestation of disdain for the feelings and expectations of the families of those registered on the aborted visit, and condemns the excuses advanced by the other parties to justify this irresponsible act, by trying to lay the blame on the HCR which exclusively monitors this humanitarian operation," Morocco's foreign ministry said in a statement.

    The statement added that while the Kingdom commends the measures taken by the HCR on the basis of a new proposal, that was accepted by all the parties, by setting up a new list to break the deadlock for which only Polisario bears responsibility, the Moroccan authorities strongly denounce this about-turn, added to repeated acts of this politicization of confidence-building measures by the other parties since the launch of the operation back in 2004.

    It underlined that these acts violate humanitarian principles and the action plan governing the operation.

    The statement noted that the excuse advanced by polisario is that it had not agreed to the resumption of the operation, which obliged the HCR to cancel the operation.

    The ministry insisted that this new attitude of blackmail confirms that the other parties bear full responsibility for the cancellation of the family visit exchange programme, and is a challenge to the Security Council which called, in its resolution 1920 of 30 April 2010, for prompt resumption of this operation.

     In conformity with its commitments, Morocco multiplied initiatives and constructively cooperated with the High Commissioner for Refugees on the eve of Eid Al-Fitr (which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan) and reiterated the Moroccan authorities’ readiness to make all efforts to resume this eminently humanitarian operation, it said.