FIVE MALIAN SOLDIERS RELEASED FOLLOWING TALKS IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAMAKO 000684

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/28/2018
TAGS: ASEC PINS PINR ML
SUBJECT: FIVE MALIAN SOLDIERS RELEASED FOLLOWING TALKS IN
ALGIERS

REF: A. BAMAKO 00675

B. BAMAKO 00463

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

1.(C) Summary: On July 23 the Malian Government released a
statement signed by Minister of Territorial Administration,
General Kafougouna Kone, regarding recently concluded talks
with Tuareg rebels in Algiers. A rough translation of the
statement is included below. On July 28 a group of Tuareg
rebels reportedly aligned with Merzouk ag Acherif and Hamma
Moussa handed five captured members of the Malian military
over to a Malian army unit in Tessalit. These soldiers were
likely among those captured either in Tessalit on July 19 or
Abeibara on May 21 (Refs. A and B). End Summary.

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Malian Statement On Negotiations in Algiers
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2.(U) Begin text of July 23 statement released by the Malian
Government following recent negotiations with Tuareg rebel in
Algiers:

On the invitation of the Government of the Algerian
Democratic and Popular Republic and under its mediation, a
delegation representing the Government of the Republic of
Mali led by Minister of Territorial Administration and Local
Collectivities, Division General Kafougouna Kone, and the
Democratic Alliance of May 23 for Change, met on the 18th,
19th, 20th and 21st of July 2008 in Algiers to examine the
evolution of the situation in the Region of Kidal and conduct
a follow-up evaluation of the Algiers Accords of 4 July 2006.

After welcoming Algeria's return as mediator, the two sides
reaffirmed:
- their dedication to respecting the territorial integrity
and national unity of Mali;
- their determination to find a sustainable and definitive
solution to the crisis occurring in the Region of Kidal.

Convinced of the interdependence of development, peace,
security and stability, the two sides underlined:
- the relevance and validity of the Algiers Accords;
- the devotion of all Malians to pursuing the consolidation
of peace, security and development in the Region.

Following the discussions, it was agreed to:
- liberate all persons detained as soon as possible;
- create conditions for the rapid return of displaced persons;
- undertake the demining of all affected areas.

In addition, it was also decided to determine the
circumstances of the deaths of the Officers of the Malian
Armed Forces, Commandant Barka Chiekh and Captain Oumar
N'Datou, as well as Imam Mohamed ag Moussa and all other
similar cases. The two parties agreed to meet again in the
near future in order to evaluate the application of the
agreed upon measures and to resume discussions regarding the
implementation of all remaining aspects of the Algiers
Accords.

End Text.

3.(C) Captain Oumar N'Datou was an Arab Berabiche member of
the Malian military who was killed defending the Malian
gendarme base in Abeibara against an attack by the Tuareg
rebel Alliance for Democracy and Change (ADC) on May 21.
Tuareg rebels claim that Captain N'Datou was killed by fellow
Malian soldiers during the fighting after N'Datou raised the
possibility of negotiating with the attacking Tuareg rebels.
The Tuareg delegation in Algiers prevailed on the Malians and
Algerians to include reference to N'Datou's death alongside
mention of the April 10 executions of Barka ag Chiekh and
Mohamed ag Moussa in Kidal.

4.(C) Several tacit understandings reportedly reached by the
two sides do not appear in the official statement released by
the Malian Government. These include an informal, apparently
verbal, agreement to liberate the "detainees", including
approximately 90 Malian soldiers held by the Tuaregs, by
mid-August; and the creation of a 200 member oversight and
security "committee" composed of Tuareg rebels and Malian
soldiers. A timetable for the liberation of hostages and
prisoners was apparently left out of the document because the

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Malian and Tuareg delegations were unable to agree on a
specific release date. Reference to the proposed 200 person
oversight and security committee - which may presage the
creation of the special military units outlined by the
Algiers Accords - was apparently omitted due to objections
raised by Ibrahim Bahanga regarding the composition of the
committee.

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Five Prisoners Released
--------------

5.(U) On July 26 an Algerian newspaper published an
interview with Ibrahim Bahanga. During the interview Bahanga
said that the Malian and Tuareg sides failed to reach an
agreement and that the Malian prisoners, which according to
Bahanga now number 92, would not be released any time soon.

6.(C) On July 28 Cheick ag Baye (the Kidal Coordinator of
Mali's Agency for Youth Employment) and Acherif ag Mohamed
(an advisor to President Amadou Toumani Toure) informed the
Embassy that 5 Malian soldiers had been handed over to the
Malian army in Tessalit earlier in the morning. According to
ag Baye and ag Mohamed, the solders were released by Tuareg
rebels aligned with Merzouk ag Acherif, Hamma Moussa, and
Kidal Chamber of Commerce president Abdoussalam ag Assalat.
Ag Baye and ag Mohamed thought the liberated soldiers were
among those captured by the ADC during the attack on Abeibara
on May 21.

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Comment: One Small Step Forward
--------------

7.(C) Reaction from the Malian government to the talks in
Algiers seems to be generally positive. We have not yet been
able to speak directly to any members of the ADC delegation
now on their way back to Mali from Tamanrasset, but Tuaregs
in touch with ADC spokesman Ahmada ag Bibi report that the
ADC also found the discussions constructive. The apparent
release of five Malian soldiers in Tessalit indicates that
some Tuareg rebels believe progress was made in Algiers.
News emanating from the Bahanga camp is less encouraging,
however, and the best measure of success for last week's
talks may be the number of Malian soldiers still in Tuareg
rebel hands come mid-August.
LEONARD