Tuareg rebels in Mali support French intervention

The Tuareg rebels who want an independent state of Azawad in northern Mali are ready to support French military intervention to help combat Islamic rebels in the north.

Contrary to my report in an earlier article, the rebels in northern Mali are not all united against the French military intervention. Moussa Ag Assarid, a representative of the Azawad National Liberation Movement, said:

"We're ready to help, we are already involved in the fight against terrorism. We can do the job on the ground. We've got men, arms and, above all, the desire to rid Azawad of terrorism."

After a coup in March of 2012, the Tuareg were able to capture much of the north. On April 6 2012, the MNLA declared the independence of Azawad from Mali. A declaration of Independence was signed but no foreign government recognized the state. Over the next month or so, the MNLA lost territory to Islamists. One group that contested territory with the MNLA was Ansar Dine led by former Tuareg fighter Ilya Ag Ghaly. Although the MNLA and Ansar Dine declared on May 26 that they would merge to form an Islamist state, conflict continued. Towards the end of June 2012, Ansar Dine claimed control of all the cities in northern Mali. The MNLA, very much weakened, tried to negotiate a form of self-rule with the central government. . The Tuareg now expect the Malian government to allow the French to help them defeat the Islamists and as a reward give them autonomy in the north. They also demand that the Malian army stay out of the territory until an agreement is reached. An MNLA official said:

"We don't want to see the Malian army in Azawad without a prior accord between the two parties. We are ready for talks aimed at finding a solution."

It is not clear that the MNLA has much sway now on the ground. The group is accused of raping and pillage in its earlier takeover of the north. The MNLA made the mistake of selling weapons to the Islamists. Some of the Tuareg had fought for Gadaffi and when he was overthrown moved into Mali bringing weapons with them.

Mali militants take over more territory but unable to provide services

The entire northern part of Mali has been taken over by Islamic militants but the group is having problems trying to offer government services as state employees fled the region.

The Islamic group Ansar Dine has taken over northern Mali. Both they and Tuareg rebels were able to drive out Malian forces after a coup last March. However now the Islamic radicals have taken control. The group has had no experience in providing basic services such as electricity, water, and schools.

A group from the south called the Coalition for Mali recently visited the area. In some cases the militants asked that former state functionaries return to help the group provide basic services for the population. The Ansar Dine appear to have subdued the population and subjected them to harsh Sharia law. Some have also destroyed ancient historic religious and cultural artifacts. However, the group just does not have the expertise to provide state services. They are aware of this weakness and no doubt also aware that if they do not provide services that help the people they are ruling that they will face constant opposition. Daouda Maiga used to run a state development program in the Kidal region. When the Islamists invaded most people simply left. Maiga said;

“They asked for the state to resume its functions, because it's too complicated for them to manage..They are not used to running things.

Almost 400,000 people fled the north draining the area of people with the skills to help govern in a way that provides people with basic services.

The Ansar Dine has now occupied the north for five months and there has yet been no move from the south to dislodge them as there is still political struggle after the coup to establish some type of legitimate government. West African regional intervention has yet to happen. Any type of armed intervention is likely to worsen the situation. Perhaps the best solution would be to actually provide the sorts of skills that would help the people and are needed by the Islamists. However, that is unlikely in my opinion. The Ansar Dine are said to have links to Al Qaeda and are not acceptable to the U.S. or any of the western supported and western-trained military groups in the area. The next strongest group in the area are Tuareg who are not acceptable either since some served in the Libyan armed forces under Qaddafi.

Recently the Ansar Dine has moved further south to seize control of the town of Douentza which had been ruled by a local militia. While the area is still far from the capital Bomaka it is close to the area controlled by the government in Mali. Ironically the original army coup against the democratically elected president of Mali was justified by the lack of government action to dislodge northern rebels. The result of the coup has been complete loss of control in the region.

African Union wants new government formed in Mali

 The  Peace and Security Council of  the African Union is critical of the transitional government set up in Mali after the coup leader Captain Sanogo handed over power to a transitional civilian government. Sanogo and his comrades retained considerable influence and Sanogo was given the title of former head of state together with a salary.
    The Peace and Security Council(PSC) called on the ex-junta members to stop interfering in the government. In fact the group went further and called for the "effective dissolution" of the former junta group and an end to its "unacceptable interference" in the government's transition process.
      The situation is dire in northern Mali as the entire territory is now occupied by the Ansar Dine group who are radical Islamists.  The original coup in March that overthrew a democratically elected president was justified by that government's inability to put down rebels in the north. After the coup the north was occupied first by the Tuareg who now have been driven out by radical Islamists said to be associated with Al Qaeda.. The Islamists have vandalized historical sites in Timbuktu. Until there is a more stable government in the south there is not likely to be any drive to recover the north of the country. For more see this article..

U.S. Special Forces in Mali

An article in the Washington Post by Craig Whitlock  reveals some details about U.S. Special Forces operations in Mali. He has a fascinating story about the crash of a jeep back on April 20 in the capital Bamako. The jeep went through a guard rail on a bridge and crashed into a river killing three U.S. Army commandos and three women. The women were apparently known as prostitutes. The crash took place early in the morning just before dawn.
   This crash happened a month after the U.S. had supposedly suspended military operations in Mali after a coup by Captain Sanogo. The coup leader was himself  U.S. trained. Military officials have yet to fully explain what the commandos were doing.
   What is clear is that Special Forces are engaged in counter terrorism operations. Obama has spoken of his desire to rely on Special Operations forces rather than regular troops. Their ranks have been increasing. The group still remaining in Mali were said to be there to provide assistance to the U.S. embassy in Mali and were winding down civil affairs but hoped to resume activity soon. Two of those killed were communications specialists.
    For about six years the U.S. has been increasing military and training programs in Mali. Rather than crushing Islamic radicalism the result has been increased activity and now the Islamists (Ansar Dine) have wrested control of the whole of  northern Mali from control of the Tuareg and the central government.
   Earlier the U.S. had carried out an extensive classified program called Creek Sand. There was even a plan to embed U.S. special forces commandos with Malian troops but this was rejected by the U.S. ambassador. No doubt the U.S. will again become involved once the post coup government is more stable. Of course the U.S. trained coup leader was never punished for overthrowing a democratically elected president. Instead Captain Sanogo was able to gain influence in the new government. For more see this article.

Mali: Islamic rebels driving out Tuareg in north

An alliance between Tuaraeg rebels who set up the state of Azawad in northern Mali and Ansar Dine an Islamic rebel group has broken down with the Ansar Dine taking over Timbuktu and apparently some other towns in the north.

Ansar Dine is said to be linked to Al Qaeda. In the town of Gao there was also a fight between Tuareg and Ansar Dine with 20 being killed and Ansar Dine taking over the town. These developments will make it virtually certain that there will be military intervention and further bloodshed in the north as Malian troops bolstered by other African troops from ECOWAS will try to retake the territory.

No officials from Ansar Dine or the Tuareg could be reached to confirm these actions. UNESCO is worried about World Hertiage sites in Timbuktu since the Ansar Dine may very well vandaliz them . From the video at this site it would seem this has already happened to some extent. The Ansar Dine impose Sharia law wherever they go.

Key cities in northern Mali were seized by the Tuareg earlier in March but then Islamist fighters appeared from the mountains. The Tuareg was a secular state while the Islamist want an Islamist state with Islamic law. Some Tuareg came from Libya where they had fought for Gadaffi and were well armed. It is not clear where the Islamists manage to get all their firepower and who finances them. For more see this article.

Rival Rebel Groups disagree over nature of new Azawad state in Mali

Although the Tuareg and Islamic militants have jointly driven out the Malian military from the northern area they are unable to agree on the nature of the newly declared independent Azawad.

The largest group is the Tuareg led National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (NMLA). This group fought most of the major battles against the Malian military. However, as they advanced the Islamic militant group Ansar Dine joined in the fray. This group wants Azawad to be a Taliban style state under Sharia law.

On the other hand the Tuareg some of whom fought for Gadaffi want a secular state. Gadaffi of course persecuted radical Islmanists. Some claim that Ansar Dine has ties to Al Qaeda. I always take such claims with a grain of salt. Often this is used as a justification for U.S. aid or even involvement. There are already U.S. special forces in Mali and the Malian military have been trained and provided aid by the U.S. One can expect a military move to oust the rebels after the political situation is sorted out down south.

A couple of months ago a U.S trained Capt. Sanogo led a successful military coup against the elected president. While he handed over power to a transitional civilian government he is still influential and of course was not punished for his actions.

The Tuareg want Azawad to ratify UN conventions on human rights and be a secular state. Both the Tuareg and Islamists have forces in major cities. So far they have avoided outright conflict. The groups no doubt realize they need unity to confront attempts by the Malian military to retake the territory. For more see this article.