TUAREG CLAIMS AND COUNTER-CLAIMS FOR RECENT ATTACKS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAMAKO 000446

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/16/2018
TAGS: ASEC PINS PINR ML
SUBJECT: TUAREG CLAIMS AND COUNTER-CLAIMS FOR RECENT ATTACKS

REF: A. BAMAKO 00435

B. BAMAKO 00419

Classified By: Political Officer Aaron Sampson, Embassy Bamako, for
reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

1.(C) Summary: Two Tuareg groups have claimed
responsibility for the May 12 attack on the gendarme base in
the town of Ansongo to the east of Gao (Ref. A). One claim
was issued by Hama ag Sid'Ahmed, the Paris-based spokesman of
the Northern Mali Tuareg Alliance for Change (ATNMC) and
Ibrahim Bahanga's father-in-law. Sid'Ahmed also claimed
responsibility for the May 6 attack in Diabali which was
orchestrated by the Tuareg rebel Alliance for Democracy and
Change (ADC). Speaking on his own behalf, Bahanga has denied
any involvement. The other, more credible claim for the
Ansongo attack is from a new Tuareg group led by former rebel
Akly ag Iknan and Ahmoudou Badi, a convicted murderer turned
escaped prisoner. There are now four known Tuareg militias
operating in northern Mali. Each one of these militias
appears to draw from specific Tuareg fractions or sub-groups,
suggesting significant internal divisions within Mali's
Tuareg population and reinforcing concerns that Mali may soon
face multiple Tuareg militias each rebelling for overlapping,
yet different, reasons. End Summary.

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Like Father (in-Law),Like Son...Or Not
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2.(C) Ibrahim Bahanga's father-in-law and ATNMC spokesman
Hama ag Sid'Ahmed claimed responsibility for the May 6 attack
against the Malian military post in Diabali (Ref. B) as well
as for the May 12 attack against the gendarme base in
Ansongo. Speaking for himself, Bahanga denied involvement
with either attack and reiterated his respect for a
cease-fire agreement with the Malian government that
apparently expires on May 25 (Ref. C). On May 15 a Malian
newspaper made light of the contradictory statements
emanating from the ATNMC by asking: "Who should we believe?
The Father, the Son, or the Holy peace-loving Malian State
that says nothing at all?"

3.(C) This is not the first time the Paris-based Sid'Ahmed
has released statements on the ATNMC's behalf that were
immediately repudiated by ATNMC leaders actually on the
ground in northern Mali. Sid'Ahmed's declarations likely
represent nothing more than a clumsy attempt to position the
ATNMC as the lead group in northern Mali's increasingly
complicated matrix of rebel movements. We continue to
believe that the May 6 attack in Diabali was orchestrated by
members of the ADC and that the May 12 attack in Ansongo was
the work of an Imghad Tuareg group based in the region of
Gao.

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The Rebel and the Murderer in Ansongo
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4.(C) On May 14 a statement claiming responsibility for the
May 12 Ansongo attack was posted to a Kidal Tuareg website
under the name of Akly ag Iknan, a Imghad Tuareg who belonged
to the Revolutionary Army for the Liberation of the Azawad
(ARLA) during the rebellion of the 1990s. Ag Iknan is an
associate of Ahmoudou Badi, another Imghad Tuareg believed to
have participated in the Ansongo attack. Badi was sentenced
to life in prison in 2004 for the 1999 carjacking and murder
of a Danish national employed by Maersk shipping. Badi
escaped in 2006 when authorities brought him to Bamako's main
hospital for medical consultations. Although Badi has been a
fugitive for nearly two years, there is no evidence of an
attempt by the Malian government to recapture him.

5.(U) The statement rejected any links to the ADC or the
ATNMC, and said the attack was carried out in the name of
Tuaregs from the Imghad fraction located in the region of
Gao. The author claimed to have captured four all-terrain
vehicles, 3 Dakterioff machine guns, 45 Chinese made
semi-automatic weapons, 6 AK-47 assault rifles, 15 cases
containing 150 60mm mortar rounds, 20 cases of 14.5mm
ammunition rounds, 75 cases containing 52,000 rounds of AK-47
ammunition, and 15 cases containing 10,500 rounds of 7.65mm
ammunition. The statement, which also provided Iknan's
satellite telephone number, encouraged other Imghads to join
Iknan and threatened a "vast plan of attacks" in coming days
to "disprove those who dismiss the Imghad as incapable."


BAMAKO 00000446 002 OF 002


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Comment: Rebelling Against the Government and Each Other
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6.(C) There are now four known Tuareg militia groups
operating in northern Mali. Each of these appear to draw
their membership from specific Tuareg fractions or ethnic
sub-groups. ADC members belong primarily to the Ifoghas
group of Kidal Tuaregs. The ATNMC is dominated by
individuals from the Ifergoumessen fraction of Tuareg Ifoghas
based in Tinzawaten. Followers of Merzouk ag Acherif's band
seem to be mostly Idnane Tuaregs from Tessalit. The group
that attacked Ansongo, meanwhile, consisted of Imghad Tuaregs
from the region of Gao and Menaka. The ethnic nature of each
of these groups indicates significant internal divisions
within Mali's Tuareg population - a development that may
seriously complicate attempts to map a peaceful return to the
framework of the Algiers Accords since each group seems to be
rebelling for overlapping, yet different, reasons. The
Ifergoumessen of the ATNMC, for instance, are likely
rebelling not only against the Malian military but also
against what they perceive as a history of domination by
fellow Tuaregs from the Ifoghas tribe. The same presumably
holds for the Idnane following Merzouk and the Imghads
aligned with ag Iknan. A decision by Algeria to resume its
mediation efforts may be the only way to keep these
long-standing internal disputes from escalating. A quick
move by the Algerians would also be noted by other northern
groups - whether Tuareg, Arab or Songhrai - harboring similar
perceived grievances against the Malian government and one
another.
MCCULLEY