Since 1975, it also contains several Sahrawi refugee camps operated by the Polisario Front, a national liberation movement seeking the self-determination of Western Sahara.

[citation needed] In 1963, the area was the scene of fighting between Algerian and Moroccan forces laying claim to western Algeria, during the Sand War.

Since the mid-70s, the Tindouf region has served as the base for the Polisario Front, a Sahrawi nationalist organization fighting for Western Sahara's independence.

The Polisario Front is headquartered in self-administered refugee camps south of the city,[citation needed] which filled up as Moroccan and Mauritanian forces conquered Western Sahara in 1975.

[citation needed] Since 1990 the area has been quiet, although the refugee community remains in Algeria, pending a UN-sponsored peace process and a referendum on independence.