"The Moroccan government did ask us (in the past 48 hours) if we could resume African Lion," embassy spokesman Rodney Ford told AFP.


"Most of our forces had already redeployed. But some elements are still on the ground. So we are conducting modified limited military engagements," he said.


Aerial training, refuelling and workshops were among the resumed activities, he added.


The US army was to conduct the "African Lion 2013" joint military exercises with Morocco from April 7-27, involving 1,400 personnel from US Africa Command (AFRICOM) and 900 members of the Moroccan armed forces.


But it began redeploying troops and equipment last week amid disagreement over a plan to broaden MINURSO's  mandate in the to include rights monitoring.The cancellation of African Lion came as US-backed plans emerged on extending the mandate of the UN peacekeeping mission in the Sahara to probe alleged human rights abuses, an initiative categorically rejected by Morocco.


The Security Council resolution on the UN peacekeeping force is to be voted on Thursday.

  

A U.S.-drafted resolution that proposed allowing United Nations peacekeepers to monitor human rights abuses had angered Morocco, and taken its traditional protector France by surprise.

"There will be a resolution very soon for a new mandate of the MINURSO," French Foreign Ministry spokesman  told reporters, referring to the mission's acronym. "We are close to a solution that will satisfy everybody."

Lalliot declined to comment on the details of the resolution, which was due to be voted on April 25.

But three Western diplomats said the United States had dropped the demands after its resolution was reviewed by a group of countries including the United States, France, Spain, Britain and Russia.

The United States' U.N. mission had no immediate comment.

A tract of desert the size of Britain that has lucrative phosphate reserves and potentially offshore oil, the Western Sahara is the focus of Africa's longest-running territorial dispute.

It dates back to 1975 and pits Morocco, which claims the region is part of its territory, against the Algeria-backed Polisario Front independence movement.

Europe and the United States say their worry is that the conflict is souring relations between Morocco and Algeria and preventing them from working together against Islamist violence.

While allegations of abuse have lessened since a 1975-1991 war, rights groups like Amnesty International accuse Morocco of continuing to use excessive force against demonstrators and activists and repressing political freedom, among other abuses.

Morocco and France, its former colonial ruler, have resisted the idea of peacekeepers reporting on rights abuses in Western Sahara, with Paris a longtime supporter of Rabat due to historical ties and business relations.

The United Nations brokered a ceasefire settlement in 1991 between Morocco and Polisario with the understanding that a referendum would be held on the region's fate.

But the referendum never took place and attempts to reach a lasting deal have foundered.

A senior Polisario official told Reuters the group was struggling to prevent its youth from taking up arms after seeing years of failed talks and ongoing rights abuses.

"This (compromise) is a big mistake that shows to the Sahrawis that their pacifism isn't leading to anything. It's a shame," said Paris-based Omar Mansour, a member of the Polisario's National Secretariat decision-making body.

After proposing against all odds, an anti Moroccan draft resolution on the Sahara to the UN to extend the mandate of MINURSO to monitor human rights, the Obama administration has not had to wait too long for its response on the part of Morocco.

Thus, according to U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, cited by the U.S. news agency Associated Press (AP), the kingdom  canceled at the last minute exercise African Lion, by ordering 900 FAR soldiers who were deployed with their equipment in preparation for participation in the bilateral exercise with the U.S. military to store their equipment and to withdraw immediately from the scope of practice.

 

U.S. officials added that the Moroccan authorities have not at this time issued any comment on the cancellation.

 

Exercise African Lion is held annually between the U.S. Army and the Royal Moroccan Armed Foreces , for training provided by live fire,large  maneouver classes, such as artillery, amphibious operations and training flights at low altitude.

 

This year the African Lion pitted, 1400 U.S. soldiers and 900 Moroccan soldiers, it was to take place in the presence of observers from the French and German armies.

 

According to the spokesman for the U.S. Africa Command (Africom), Eric Elliott, U.S. troops and their equipment were being made when the last-minute withdrawal of Morocco fell, evoking the same reaction. The high financial cost of such a commitment and the  Moroccan cancellation harmed the U.S. Army which he said relies heavily on this year "because it gives us the opportunity to work with Morocco which military is the best organised force and most professional of the African continent, "he said.

 

 

The benchmark contract for April delivery lost 9.35% to finish at 1,360.60 dollars on the exchange platform Comex futures. It  lost up to 10.9% during the electronic trade, falling to its lowest level in two years to 1,338.00 dollars.
 
The yellow metal had not been in such a tumble on a session in New York since 28 February 1983.
 
In London, an ounce of gold finished at 1395 dollars at auction night against 1,535.50 dollars on Friday evening, with a decline of 9.15%.
 
The contract for June delivery, the most traded, has lost up to 11% during the exchange.
 
Beyond the fall of the precious metal, much appreciated by investors in times of uncertainty and risk aversion, the day also proved historic in terms of participation, with more than 620,000 trade on the contract in June
 
"r Comex   has never experienced such exchanges on a session since the beginning of futures options brokerage in the United States," on  December 31, 1974,  Damon Leavell, a spokesman for Comex told AFP.
 
Comex, or Commodity Exchange, is a subsidiary of the operator CME Group, the world leader in derivatives brokerage.
 
In total, over the last two sessions, gold has lost more than $ 200 an ounce, another record over two days for almost 40 years in the United States.
 
"I did not expect such a beating," he told Bart Melek, chief strategist at TD Securities raw materials.


"Mounted too fast, too high"

Gold is tilted with the rest of the commodities market, crude copper, through money, after the announcement in the night from Sunday to Mondayof the unexpected slowdown in Chinese growth the first quarter.
 
The gross domestic product of the Asian giant stood at 7.7% annual rate over the first three months of 2013, surprising analysts who were betting on a slight acceleration, with a GDP of around 8%.
 
But for analysts, this disappointment was only a pretext to pursue a downward movement of the yellow metal began sharply last week.
 
"A lot of people try to get rid of their paris on the rise and begin to bet on the decline. Gold was simply mounted too fast, too high," said Mr. Malik.
 
With the almost irresistible rise since the beginning of the U.S. equity market, which has very huge financial assistance from the central bank (Fed) has chained a race record since early March, investors tend to review their priorities, according to analysts.
 
"People are wondering what  is a safe asset, and increasingly, they tend to go into equities, although Wall Street has not been very successful today," said one broker Italian bank.
 
On the other hand, signs of a slowdown in Chinese economic indicators and gloomy figures in the United States since early April tend to allay fears of overheating and inflation risks.
 
However, the risk of inflation is a key driver of asset purchases traditionally considered safe, such as gold. In its absence, and despite the support given stimulus by central banks from Washington to Tokyo, the gold loses one of its most valuable allies.
 
"All the more so, since the release of the minutes of the last meeting" Wednesday, "many expect the Fed to slow down its program of quantitative easing in the year," added Mr. Melek, "while inflation seems to be still far off. "
 
On the European side the courses have also suffered "fears of highly indebted countries such as Cyprus, sell their gold to pay their debt," noted Kathleen Brooks, an analyst at Forex.com, which would increase the supply of the market.