Djamel Okacha | |
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Nickname(s) | Yahia Abou al-Hamman |
Born | May 9, 1978 Reghaia, Algeria |
Died | February 21, 2019 Elakla, Tombouctou Region, Mali |
Allegiance | GSPC (1997-2007) AQIM (2007-2019) JNIM (2017-2019) |
Rank | Emir of Katiba al-Mulathamoun (2000s) Emir of Katiba al-Furqan (2009-2019) Emir of the Sahara (2012-2017) Second-in-command of JNIM (2017-2019) |
Unit | Katiba al-Mulathamoun (2003-2009) Katiba al-Furqan (2009-2019) |
Battles / wars | Lemgheity attack In Amenas hostage crisis Fall of Timbuktu (2012) Battle of Ifoghas Battle of Elakla † |
Djamel Okacha, nom de guerre Yahia Abou al-Hamman, was an Algerian jihadist who fought in the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) and later Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM). Okacha served as the commanders of Katiba al-Furqan and Katiba al-Mulathamoun within AQIM, and was appointed as the co-governor of Tombouctou Region during Ansar Dine's capture of the region during the 2012 Tuareg rebellion. Okacha was then appointed as the second-in-command of AQIM between 2012 and 2017, where he co-founded JNIM alongside Iyad Ag Ghaly and Amadou Kouffa. Okacha served as the second-in-command of JNIM until his death in 2019.