Tag Archives: France

UN Mission in Mali Deploys While Malian Government Confirms Elections

The United Nations has commenced its military mission in Mali, effectively bolstering the mission in a country that remains to be threatened by militants and which is just weeks away from what many believe could be chaotic elections.  The UN mission, known as MINUSMA, is bringing 6,000 West African troops, who are already in the country, under its command.  The operation will eventually double in size as by December of this year, the UN force will reach its full strength, with 12,600 uniformed personnel under its command.  It will be the world body’s third largest mission.  During the launch ceremony, which was held in Bamako, mission chief Bert Koenders stated that “MINUSMA’s military force will be reinforced gradually in the coming months,” further noting that “contingents will deploy in the main population centers in northern Mali… But MINUSMA cannot do everything.  We are here to support the efforts of the government and its partners.”  The UN force will operate alongside troops from its former colonial power France, some of whom will remain in the country in order to tackle the remaining Islamist militants who continue to pose a threat to the security of the entire country.  There are currently around 6,000 troops, mainly from West African countries, however the UN is still seeking soldiers, helicopters and intelligence support from contributing countries before the mission is fully up and running by the end of this year.

Although the UN force is expected to eventually take over security duties from the French forces, which led an operation to oust Islamist militants from the northern region of the country back in January, its first mission will be to secure the north so that Mali can hold nationwide presidential elections on 28 July.  Despite weeks of uncertainty pertaining to the elections, the interim Malian government confirmed on Tuesday that the elections will go ahead as planned.  The decision to hold the first round of elections on 28 July, which will possibly be followed by a second round on 11 August, was taken by the Malian government which was increasingly under pressure from the international community, and especially from former colonial power France, to set an election date.  However Mali’s election commission, which is organising the vote alongside the government, has stipulated that the distribution of polling cards was seriously behind schedule and that it would be “extremely difficult” to get nearly eight million cards out in a country where 500,000 people have been displaced by the conflict which has lasted more than a year.  Furthermore, the election commission also highlighted the ongoing instability that is taking place in the northeastern town of Kidal, which continues to be occupied by Tuareg separatists and which still has seen no army presence despite a ceasefire being signed between the transitional government and the rebels on 18 June in Burkina Faso.  In response to the confirmation of elections, UN Secretary-General Ban-Ki-moon stated that holding a poll on July 28 that was credible, peaceful and accepted by Malians would be “an enormous undertaking.”

Mali Security Update

Mali’s ex-junta leaders has asked for forgiveness a year-and-a-half after the coup he led destabilized the entire country.  Presidential elections in Mali remain to be uncertain while the United Nations Security Council has confirmed that a UN peacekeeping force will be deployed to Mali at the start of July.

Captian Amadou Sanogo, the military chief who led the coup that destabilized Mali last year, indicated during a reconciliation ceremony between rival army factions that he wanted “to ask for forgiveness from Malians as a whole.”  The event which was held on Wednesday was aimed to heal the split between the rival army factions.  Amongst those who attended the event was Mali’s interim President Dioncounda Traore, where he announced that all the soldiers who had been arrested after trying to stage a counter-coup in May 2012 have since been released.

In March 2012, Captain Sanogo headed the forces that would eventually overthrow the regime of President Amadou Toumani Toure.  Political and economic instability followed while a French intervention was launched in January 2013 in order to combat an advancing Islamist militant threat.  International troops quickly moved in to tackle al-Qaeda militants and their allies who took advantage of the chaos and gained control of the country’s vast northern desert region.  The coup also created a rift amongst the pro-junta soldiers and those who were loyal to the former president.

Although France has began a gradual troop withdrawal in April this year, and has started to hand over security operations to a regional African force that was set up in order to help the Malian army provide security, Islamist militants have continued to lead guerrilla-style attacks, leading many regional and international states to have doubts about the security level in the country.  Furthermore, although Tuareg rebels signed a peace deal, which was intended to help pave the elections on 28 July, with the interim Malian government, doubts about the upcoming elections have also increased, as many believe the country is not yet ready and stable enough in order to hold nationwide elections.  Even as political parties rushed to meet the deadline for submitting their candidates, Mali’s electoral body voiced its doubts on Friday over the feasibility of holding the much-anticipated presidential poll in July as planned.  President of the National Independent Election Commission Mamadou Diamoutene indicated on Friday that there were a number of challenges that remain to be resolved, stating that “the deadline for candidates to file expires today at midnight.  An yet there are many obstacles for us to overcome.  I have said it before and I will say it now:  it will be very difficult to stick to the date of July 28.”  Amongst the challenges is the fact that electoral ID cards only began being distributed on Friday, one month before the scheduled poll.  Mali is a nation twice the size of France, and the country’s vast northern regions remains to be cut off from the rest of the country, consequently making it unlikely that the cards will be able to be distributed to all precincts in time.  The cards are also missing key information, such as voters‘ polling locations.

What is certain is that a UN peacekeeping force will likely deploy in Mali from 1 July.  Earlier this week, the United Nations Security Council agreed that a 12,600 peacekeeping force, known as MINUSMA, should deploy at the beginning of July.  The force will incorporate the 6,000 West African soldiers who are already in the country.  It will aim to provide security for the election and will likely face security and political obstacles and will be deployed in extreme summer heat.  It will also aim to provide security for the presidential elections.

Peace Accord Reached Between Malian Government and Tuareg Rebels

Mali’s government has signed a peace deal with Tuareg rebels which will effectively help pave the way for elections which are due to take place at the end of next month.  Officials in Mali have indicated that the newly signed accord calls for an immediate ceasefire and for government troops to return to the rebel-held northern town of Kidal.  In turn, the Tuareg rebels will be restricted to set areas while long-term peace talks will begin after the elections are held.  The Malian army had previously threatened to seize the city if no agreement had been reached however Mali’s security forces will now return to Kidal, which has become a de facto Tuareg state, before the 28 July presidential elections.  According to the agreement, the deployment will begin with a unit of gendarmes and police, followed by a progressive deployment of Mali’s army, which will be in close collaboration with African and United nations forces.

Tuareg rebels had captured the northern capital city of Kidal after a French-led offensive forced al-Qaeda-linked militant Islamists out of the town back in January of this year.  The traditionally nomadic Tuaregs, who consider northern Mali their hereditary homeland, have been seeking to gain autonomy ever since Mali gained its independence from France in 1960, citing that they have been marginalized by the central government in Bamako, Mali’s capital city.  Since the 1960’s, Tuareg rebels have picked up arms against the state a number of times.  The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), which was founded in late 2011, is the most recent movement which has claimed greater autonomy for Mali’s Tuaregs.  The MNLA, which signed the accord, had initially formed an alliance with al-Qaeda-linked militants who seized the north in the spring of 2012.  However the alliance quickly disintegrated and the Islamist militants swiftly seized control of the MNLA’s strongholds.

As the Malian military began to advance on Kidal last month, many feared that clashes would occur between the MNLA and the army.  Consequently, hastily-convened talks were organized in Ouagadougou and were aimed at avoiding a direct confrontation.  The accord between the Interim Malian government and the MNLA was reached after nearly two weeks of talks that were brokered by Burkina Faso’s President Blaise Compaore.  The talks were held in the capital city of Burkina Faso, which is the regional mediator for the conflict and which has become a de facto home-away-from-home for rebels in conflict with Mali’s government.  The accord was signed in front of reporters by two Tuareg representatives and Territorial Administration Minister Moussa Sinko Coulibaly.

In response to the peace deal, Malian government representative Tiebile Drame has indicated that the two sides had overcome their greatest differences, stating that “I think we can say that the biggest task is finished.  We have agreed on the essentials…there is an international consensus as well as a Malian consensus on the fundamental questions, which include the integrity of our territory, national unity, and the secular republican nature of our state.”  MNLA spokesman Moussa Ag Attaher confirmed that a deal had been reached, stating that “the MNLA and the High Council for the Azawad (the rebel name for northern Mali) have given everything for peace and so we accept this accord.”  There has also been a positive international response since the deal was brokered on Tuesday.    Leaders at the G8 Summit in Northern Ireland have welcomed the news of the accord while United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has welcomed the signing of the agreement stating that it “…provides for an immediate ceasefire, paves the way for the holding of presidential elections nationwide and commits the parties to discussing sustainable peace in Mali through an inclusive dialogue that will take place after the election.”  France’s Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius stated that “this agreement represents a major breakthrough in exiting the crisis in Mali.”

While officials from the United Nations, France and the European Union have all praised the accord, with the EU describing the agreement as a “historic” moment, it must be noted that this is not an overall peace deal which concludes the rebellion that began a year-and-a-half ago.  Instead, this is an agreement which is meant to allow a presidential election to go ahead nationwide at the end of July, including in Kidal.  However the peace accord does state that a eight-member commission, with equal representation for Tuareg groups and Malian security forces, will be set up.  The commission will be composed of four members of each rebel group, along with members of the Malian security forces, as well as six members from the international actors who have been engaged in resolving the conflict in Mali.  This will include officials from France, the African Union and the United Nations.  According to the agreement, the commission will be tasked with determining how the rebels will be disarmed, how they will be transferred to site where they can be garrisoned and the steps that will be taken in order to allow Mali’s military to return to the occupied area.  The body will have ten days to complete this task.

The MNLA’s agreement to allow Malian forces to move into Kidal signifies an immense step towards a possible reunification of the country, which will inevitably further draw out the Islamist militants who continue to pose a threat throughout the entire country.  In turn, the Tuareg occupation of Kidal was a major obstacle to holding the presidential elections, which are seen as crucial to Mali’s recovery from the conflict which began fifteen months ago.  Although during the worst of the fighting this year, the MNLA sided with France, the group has been reluctant to allow government troops to enter Kidal for the vote.  The MNLA had previously warned that the Malian army was not allowed to enter Kidal, citing that the army was discriminating against the Tuareg rebels.  However both the Tuareg rebels and the army in Mali have been accused of committing abuses against civilians because of their ethnic origins.  With the agreement now in place, Mali’s army will now be able to enter Kidal as the country prepares for elections which are set to take place in about five weeks.  However the country’s progress and reunification will also be dependent on the long-term peace discussions which will occur after the elections are held.

Tagged as: African Union, al-Qaeda, Bamako, Blaise Compaore, Burkina Faso, European Union, France, G8 Summit, Kidal, Mali, MNLA, National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad, Tuaregs, United Nations

AQIM Confirms Death of Abou Zeid

In a statement that was published on Sunday, Al-Qaeda’s north African branch has confirmed that one of its top leaders, Abdelhamid Abou Zeid, was killed in fighting in Mali.  The confirmation from the terrorist group comes three months after officials in Chad and France announced the leaders’ death.

Algerian-born Abdelhamid Abou Zeid, considered to have been one of the most radical leaders of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), was killed “on the battlefield defending Umma (the Muslim community) and Sharia law.”  This is according to a statement that was released on Sunday and carried by ANI, which is a private Mauritanian news agency.  According to ANI director Mohamed Mahmoud Ould Abou Al-Maali, “it is the first time that an AQIM statement officially referred to the death of Abou Zeid.”  The statement however provided no date for his death.  Back in March, officials in Paris had announced that Abou Zeid was killed after France led an offensive to remove al-Qaeda-linked groups from the northern regions of Mali.  Both France and Chad have indicated that the 46-year-old militant was killed at the end of February.

Born in Debdeb, Algeria, which is located close to the border with Libya, Abou Zeid was a young activist in the FIS Islamist movement which won the country’s first democratic elections in 1991 but which was denied power.  He then disappeared underground and remained in silence for most of the 1990’s.  He re-emerged in 2003 as second in command of the GSPC, which kidnapped dozens of foreigners in southern Algeria.  The group, along with several other organizations, would later evolve into AQIM.  According to court documents Abou Zeid, whose real name was Mohamed Ghdir, was considered to be a deputy to AQIM’s “Saharan emir” Yahia Djouadi.  He commanded a battalion of fighters from Algeria, Mauritania and Mali, which was known as Tareq ibn Ziyan, named after an eighth-century Muslim military commander.

Mali

Meanwhile in Mali, a female lawmaker is set to run for President in elections which are due to be held next month.  Aissata Cise Haidara, 54, announced her candidacy on Saturday at a rally which was attended by several thousand supporters, composed mainly of women and young people.  During the rally, she stated that “I am a candidate, not just to make up the numbers but to play a role in the rebuilding of Mali, which has become an unrecognizable country today.”  She further indicated that “we must develop all of Mali although more must be done in the north.  But we have to be careful because if you focus development in the north, the south will itself revolt.”  Ms. Haidara is an MP for Bourem, which is situated in northern Mali.  Amongst other candidates in the running for the presidency are former prime ministers Soumana Sacko and Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.

International mediators have so far failed to secure an agreement between Mali’s Interim President and the northern rebels.  Although talks last weekend have brought the two groups closer, an agreement is necessary in order to enable elections to go ahead as planned on 28 July.  The MNLA indicated last week that it was ready to sign an accord proposed by Burkina Faso, which is the regional mediator, however current Mali President Dioncounda Traore has yet to agree.  Consequently the talks are continuing between the two groups.  The coming presidential elections are seen as a key step in the recovery of Mali.

Gunfire Breaks Out at Paramilitary Barracks in Niger’s Capital City

On the ground sources have indicated that gunfire broke out at a paramilitary barracks in Niamey, the capital of Niger, with sporadic shots lasting for about one hour.  According to statements from local residents, “the shooting began around 21:30 local time (2030 GMT).”  Sporadic gunfire could be heard for an hour and then the sounds of shooting stopped.  At the beginning of this year, the camp hosted troops from Chad who were at the time on transit to Mali where they have since fought jihadist militants alongside French and West African forces.

Military and government officials could not be reached in order to provide further details, and it was not immediately possible to indicate whether the gunfire was linked to a number of recent attacks in the country which have been carried by Islamist militants.  Since the incident, the area around the gendarmerie camp in the northern regions of the capital has been almost deserted.  A jeep carrying paramilitary members was seen travelling in the direction of the city centre.  A road block has also been set up at the road which heads to the northern part of the city.

With a number of violent attacks occurring in northern Niger of the past month, citizens of the country have begun to express fears of a “war on terror” in their homeland.  Tensions were raised by two suicide bombings on May 23 in the north of Niger.  The attacks targeted an army base in Agadez and a uranium mine at Arlit which is run by French nuclear giant Areva.  More than twenty people were killed in those attacks.  Earlier this month, government officials confirmed that twenty convicts escaped during a jailbreak from a prison in Niamey.

Responsibility for both suicide attacks, the first to have occurred in the west African country, have been claimed by two armed Islamist groups:  the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) and Signatories in Blood.  Algerian militant Mokhtar Belmokhtar, reported to have organized the two bombings, has threatened to attack Niger again, together with any other country that has troops stationed in Mali, where a French-led military intervention launched in January has seized back control of the northern towns from groups linked to al-Qaeda.