Tuaregs Separatist Force Announce Blockade in Northern Mali

Thu Dec 21 2023
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BAMAKO: Separatist Tuareg forces on Wednesday said they blocked all major roads in northern Mali, where the army had tried to retake the control of the area.

The Permanent Strategic Framework (CSP), an alliance of rebels announced that it had blocked all roads leading to northern borders with Mauritania, Algeria and Niger.

According to the CSP statement the blockade would cover roads leading out of the cities of Menaka, Kidal, Gao, Timbuktu and Taoudeni.  It said that all means of transport would be blocked in the region.

It is pertinent to mention that Tuareg rebel forces have lost to a Malian army operation leading the Army to recapture of the northeast city of Kidal.

Fighting between the separatists and government troops started again in August after eight years of truce, as both sides tried to fill the vacuum left by the withdrawal of UN peace troops.

The MINUSMA force left Mali on the behest of military rulers in Bamako, where the colonels seized power in 2020.

Amry in its recent gains against rebels used its army’s air power, including planes and drones.

According to the rebels and local elected officials, Mali’s army was also backed by mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner force, however the military government denies the presence of the controversial private security group in the country.

Violence in Mali

Since 2012, Mali has been battling an insurgency that started in the north of the vast West African state, claiming thousands of civilian and military lives.

Violence has subsequently swept the state while spilling over into neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso — inflaming ethnic tensions along the way.

There have been allegations of brutalities committed against civilians during the recent offensive by Mali’s army, which the authorities have denied.

The northern part of Mali is extremely difficult due to its inaccessibility and lack of security.

 

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