Tuareg rebellion (2012)
Early stage of the Mali War / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The 2012 Tuareg rebellion was the early phase of the Mali War; from January to April 2012, a war was waged against the Malian government by rebels with the goal of attaining independence for the northern region of Mali, known as Azawad.[26] It was led by the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) and was part of a series of insurgencies by traditionally nomadic Tuaregs which date back at least to 1916. The MNLA was formed by former insurgents and a significant number of heavily armed Tuaregs who fought in the Libyan Civil War.[27][28]
2012 Tuareg rebellion | |||||||
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Part of the Mali War and Tuareg rebellions and the impact of the Arab Spring | |||||||
Map of Azawad, as claimed by the MNLA. Dark grey dots indicate regions with a Tuareg majority. | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
FLNA[7][8] Ganda Iso |
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Amadou Toumani Touré (until March) Mohamed Lamine Ould Sidatt (FLNA) Housseine Khoulam (FLNA) |
Mahmoud Ag Aghaly Bilal Ag Acherif Moussa Ag Acharatoumane Mohamed Ag Najem[11] Iyad ag Ghaly[12] Omar Ould Hamaha[13] | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
7,000–7,800 regulars, ~500 (FLNA)[7] |
MNLA: 3,000[14][15] – 9000(MNLA claime)[16] Ansar Dine: ~300[15] | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
200+ killed or missing,[17][18] 400 captured[19] 1,000[20]–1,600[21] defected Total: 1,000–1,500+ killed, captured or deserted[14] | ~165 killed (Malian sources)[18][22] | ||||||
Displaced: ~100,000 refugees abroad[23] 100,000+ internally displaced persons[24] Total: ~250,000[25] |
On 22 March, President Amadou Toumani Touré was ousted in a coup d'état over his handling of the crisis, a month before a presidential election was to have taken place.[29] Mutineering soldiers, under the banner of the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy and State, (CNRDR) suspended the constitution of Mali, although this move was reversed on 1 April.[30]
The Islamist group Ansar Dine, too, began fighting the government in later stages of the conflict, claiming control of vast swathes of territory, albeit disputed by the MNLA. As a consequence of the instability following the coup, Northern Mali's three largest cities—Kidal, Gao and Timbuktu—were overrun by the rebels[31] on three consecutive days.[32][33] On 5 April, after the capture of Douentza, the MNLA said that it had accomplished its goals and called off its offensive. The following day, it proclaimed Azawad's independence from Mali.[34]
After the end of hostilities with the Malian Army, however, Tuareg nationalists and Islamists struggled to reconcile their conflicting visions for the intended new state.[35] On 27 June, Islamists from the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA) clashed with the MNLA in the Battle of Gao, wounding MNLA secretary-general Bilal Ag Acherif and taking control of the city.[36] By 17 July, MOJWA and Ansar Dine had pushed the MNLA out of all the major cities.[37]
On 14 February 2013 the MNLA renounced their claim of independence for Azawad and asked the Malian government to start negotiations on its future status.[38]