Atlas of Battles

battle, Cold War

Battle of Bir Anzarane

Battle of Bir Anzarane was a battle fought on 11 August 1979 at Bir Anzarane, in what is now Morocco. It was part of the Western Sahara War, which ran from 1975 to 1991.

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Fought11 August 1979
WhereBir Anzarane, Morocco23.893N, 14.553W
BelligerentsSahrawi Arab Democratic Republic; Polisario FrontagainstMorocco
Part ofWestern Sahara War1975 to 1991

Where it sits in the Western Sahara War

Battles of La Güera and Tichla, 1975Battle of Ain Ben Tili, 1976First Battle of Amgala, 1976Second Battle of Amgala, 1976Battle of Bucraa, 1977Battle of Zouérat, 1977Battle of Tan-Tan, 1979Battle of Tichla, 1979Battle of Bir Anzarane, 1979Battle of Smara, 1979Battle of Al Mahbes, 1979Battle of Bucraa, 1979Siege of Zag, 1979Battle of Akka, 1980Battle of Cape Boujdour, 1980Battle of Gueltat Zemmour, 1980Battle of Gueltat Zemmour, 1981Battle of Smara, 1981Battle of Guelta Zemmur, 1981Smara and Bou Craa attacks, 1982Battle of Lemseied, 1983Battle of Smara, 1983Battle of Z'Moul Niran, 1984Battle of Hausa (1984), 1984Battle of Al Mahbes, 1985Battle of Farsia, 1987Battle of Tichla, 1987Battles of Farsia and Oum Dreyga, 1987Haouza attack, 1988Battle of Oum Dreyga, 1988Battle of Guelta Zemmour, 1989Battle of Hausa, 1989Battle of Amgala, 198919751989Battle of Bir Anzarane, 1979
33 placed engagements of the Western Sahara War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date11 August 1979
PlaceBir Anzarane, Morocco
23.893N, 14.553W
KindBattle, Cold War
Casualties and losses50 dead; 500 dead (Moroccan claim); 4 to 117 vehicles destroyed100 dead; 200 dead (Polisario claim); 40 to 250 wounded; 100 to 175 prisoners
Commanders
  • Lahbib Ayoub
Battle of Bir AnzaraneBattle of Bir AnzaraneBattle of Oum DreygaBattle of Río de OroBattle of Río de Oro100 km23.893N, 14.553W
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

Nearest engagements

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1979

Battle of Bir Anzarane is one of 2,997 engagements of the 20th century in the atlas and one of 143 in present-day Morocco.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q2888145, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Bir Anzarane (1979), revision 1370107878, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.