Tuareg rebellion (2012)

2012 Tuareg rebellion
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.
Date16 January 2012 (2012-01-16) – 6 April 2012 (2012-04-06)
(2 months and 3 weeks)
Location
Northern Mali
Status

MNLA/Ansar Dine victory[5]

Belligerents

 Mali

FLNA[1][2]
Ganda Iso

 Azawad

Islamists

Commanders and leaders

Mali Amadou Toumani Touré (until March)
Mali Sadio Gassama (until March)
Mali El Hadj Ag Gamou (until March)
Mali Amadou Sanogo (since March 2012)

Mohamed Lamine Ould Sidatt (FLNA)
Housseine Khoulam (FLNA)		 Azawad Mahmoud Ag Aghaly
Azawad Bilal Ag Acherif
Azawad Moussa Ag Acharatoumane
Azawad Mohamed Ag Najem[11]
Iyad ag Ghaly[12]
Omar Ould Hamaha[13]
Strength

7,000–7,800 regulars,
4,800 paramilitaries,
3,000 militia (overall military strength)

~500 (FLNA)[1]

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]

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]

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]

  1. ^ a b "Mali: nouveau groupe armé créé dans le Nord". Europe1.fr. Agence France-Presse. Archived from the original on 14 November 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2012.
  2. ^ Felix, Bate; Diarra, Adama (10 April 2012). "New north Mali Arab force seeks to "defend" Timbuktu". Reuters. Archived from the original on 19 October 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference X44 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Couamba Sylla (4 April 2012). "Tuareg-jihadists alliance: Qaeda conquers more than half of Mali". middle-east-online.com. Archived from the original on 19 January 2013. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  5. ^ "Mali Tuareg rebels declare independence in the north". BBC News. 6 April 2012. Archived from the original on 30 October 2012. Retrieved 28 August 2012.
  6. ^ Afua Hirsch (22 March 2012). "Mali rebels claim to have ousted regime in coup". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 31 October 2012. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  7. ^ "Communiqué N°14-04-04-2012- Fin des Opérations Militaires" (in French). National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad. 4 April 2012. Archived from the original on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  8. ^ "Tuaregs claim 'independence' from Mali". Al Jazeera. 6 April 2012. Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  9. ^ "Mali Tuareg and Islamist rebels agree on Sharia state". BBC News. 26 May 2012. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  10. ^ Zoe Flood (29 June 2012). "Trouble in Timbuktu as Islamists extend control". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 13 July 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012. Ansar Dine ordered the Tuareg MNLA group to leave the historical city of Timbuktu ... backed by al-Qaeda's north African branch
  11. ^ MISNA (20 January 2012). "Mali: Fighting in North; The New Touareg War". Eurasiareview.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2013. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  12. ^ Serge Daniel (30 March 2012). "Mali's isolated junta seeks help to stop Tuareg juggernaut". ModernGhana.com. Agence France-Presse. Archived from the original on 6 November 2013. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
  13. ^ "Mali Tuareg rebels' call on independence rejected". BBC. 6 April 2012. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  14. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference detials was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ a b Sofia Bouderbala (2 April 2012). "Al-Qaeda unlikely to profit from Mali rebellion: experts". The Daily Star. Archived from the original on 7 October 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2012.
  16. ^ "Images et témoignage exclusifs du nord du Mali: un colonel du MNLA dévoile son arsenal militaire" (in French). France 24. 21 June 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2013.
  17. ^ Herve Bisseleua; Shefa Siegel; Allison Greenberg (12 April 2012). "Making sense of Mali". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 6 February 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  18. ^ a b "Fierce clashes between Malian army and Tuareg rebels kill 47". The Telegraph. London. 19 January 2012. Archived from the original on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  19. ^ Cite error: The named reference Desprisonniers was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  20. ^ Cite error: The named reference proclame was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  21. ^ Polgreen, Lydia (21 May 2018). "Mali Army, Riding U.S. Hopes, Is Proving No Match for Militants". The New York Times.
  22. ^ Cite error: The named reference Reut73 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  23. ^ Cite error: The named reference bbcposttim was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  24. ^ "Tuareg rebels take Mali garrison town, say sources". Reuters. 11 March 2012. Archived from the original on 14 April 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
  25. ^ Nick Meo (7 April 2012). "Triumphant Tuareg rebels fall out over al-Qaeda's jihad in Mali". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  26. ^ Andy Morgan (23 March 2012). "Coup threatens to plunge Mali back into the darkness of dictatorship". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 27 August 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  27. ^ Cite error: The named reference apress was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  28. ^ "Ex-Gaddafi Tuareg fighters boost Mali rebels". BBC News. 17 October 2011. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
  29. ^ "Mali soldiers say president toppled in coup – Africa". Al Jazeera. 4 October 2011. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
  30. ^ "Malian coup leaders restore constitution". Al Jazeera. 1 April 2012. Archived from the original on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  31. ^ Baba Ahmed (2 April 2012). "Islamist group plants flag in Mali's Timbuktu". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 2 February 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  32. ^ Cite error: The named reference gaocontrol was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  33. ^ Cheick Dioura & Adama Diarra (31 March 2012). "Mali Rebels Assault Gao, Northern Garrison". HuffPost. Reuters. Archived from the original on 9 February 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  34. ^ "Tuareg rebels declare the independence of Azawad, north of Mali". Al Arabiya. 6 April 2012. Archived from the original on 31 January 2013. Retrieved 6 April 2012.
  35. ^ "Mali: Islamists seize Gao from Tuareg rebels". BBC News. 27 June 2012. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
  36. ^ Serge Daniel (27 June 2012). "Islamists seize north Mali town, at least 21 dead in clashes". Agence France-Presse. Archived from the original on 1 February 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2012.
  37. ^ Adam Nossiter (18 July 2012). "Jihadists' Fierce Justice Drives Thousands to Flee Mali". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  38. ^ "Ansa.it - Ansalatina - Tuaregs de Mali renuncian a crear Estado independiente". Archived from the original on 13 April 2013. Retrieved 14 February 2013.