Tindouf

Tindouf, town and oasis in the Sahara in westernmost Algeria. Rich deposits of iron ore are at Gara Djebilet, 93 miles (150 km) southeast. The town has a large population of Regeibat nomads and is strategically important because of its location near the borders of Morocco, Mauritania, and Western Sahara. Tindouf became the headquarters of the Polisario Front guerrilla organization after the annexation of the former Spanish Sahara (now Western Sahara) by Moroccan troops in 1976. These mostly Regeibat nomads from Western Sahara received financial support from Libya and Algeria in their struggle for an independent Western Sahara. As a result of continued fighting with the Moroccans, thousands of refugees fled from Western Sahara to reside in camps south of Tindouf. Pop. (2008) 45,610.