During the 1950s and 1960s, and into the 1970s, all of the North African states gained independence from their colonial European rulers, except for a few small Spanish colonies on the far northern tip of Morocco, and parts of the Sahara region, which went from Spanish to Moroccan rule.
Tijekom 1950-ih, 1960-ih i 1970-ih sve sjevernoafričke države dobile su nezavisnost, osim nekoliko malenih španjolskih kolonija na samom sjeveru Maroka i Zapadne Sahare koja je iz španjolskih ruku došla pod marokansku vlast.