Mali War

On 16 January 2012, several insurgent groups began fighting a campaign against the Malian government for independence or greater autonomy for northern Mali , an area known as Azawad . The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), an organization fighting to make Azawad an independent homeland for the Tuareg people , had taken control of the region by April 2012. On 22 March 2012, 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. Mutinous soldiers, calling themselves the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy and State (CNRDR), took control and suspended the constitution of Mali . As a consequence of the instability following the coup, Mali's three largest northern cities— Kidal , Gao and Timbuktu —were overrun by the rebels on three consecutive days. On 5 April 2012, 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. The MNLA were initially backed by the Islamist group Ansar Dine . After the Malian military was driven from Azawad, Ansar Dine and a number of smaller Islamist groups began imposing strict Sharia law . The MNLA and Islamists struggled to reconcile their conflicting visions for an intended new state. Afterwards, the MNLA began fighting against Ansar Dine and other Islamist groups, including Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA/MUJAO), a splinter group of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb . By 17 July 2012, the MNLA had lost control of most of northern Mali's cities to the Islamists. The government of Mali asked for foreign military help to re-take the north. On 11 January 2013, the French military began operations against the Islamists. Forces from other African Union states were deployed shortly after. By 8 February, the Islamist-held territory had been re-taken by the Malian military, with help from the international coalition. Tuareg separatists have continued to fight the Islamists as well, although the MNLA has also been accused of carrying out attacks against the Malian military. A peace deal between the government and Tuareg rebels was signed on 18 June 2013 but on 26 September 2013 the rebels pulled out of the peace agreement and claimed that the government had not respected its commitments to the truce. Fighting is still ongoing even though French forces are scheduled for withdrawal. A ceasefire agreement was signed on February 19, 2015 in Algiers , Algeria but sporadic terrorist attacks still occur. "Les djihadistes s'emparent d'une ville à 400 km de Bamako" (in French) . Mali conflict: West African troops to arrive 'in days'. 15 January 2013 . Wall Street Journal . 17 January 2013 . "Chinese army soldiers conduct first mission as peacekeepers in Mali 1612131 - Army Recognition" . "Regering keurt steun aan militaire interventie in Mali goed (Belgium sends transport planes, helicopters and military personnel)" . De Standaard (in Dutch). 15 January 2012 . "Canada sending C-17 transport plane to help allies in Mali" . cbcnews.ca. 14 January 2013 . "Czech government approved sending troops to Mali" . aktuálně.cz. 6 February 2013 . "Danmark sender transportfly ind i kampene i Mali (Denmark confirms sending transport planes to Mali skirmish)" . Germany pledges third transport plane, 20m dollars for Mali The Guardian , Tuesday 29 January 2013 "Magyarország tíz kiképzővel járul hozzá a misszióhoz" (in Hungarian). kormany.hu. 14 February 2013. "Defense Minister says Hungary seeking involvement in Mali conflict" . politics.hu. 14 February 2013. The Times of India . 5 February 2013 . The Times of India . 4 February 2013 . The Economic Times . 31 January 2013 . Voice of America. 29 January 2013 . "Militari români, trimiși în misiunea din Mali" (in Romanian). Spain provides a transport plane. . US to provide French air transport in Mali . "Mali Tuareg and Islamist rebels "agree on Sharia state" . Ansar Dine ordered the Tuareg MNLA group to leave the historical city of Timbuktu ... backed by al-Qaeda's north African branch "Mali and Tuareg rebels sign peace deal" . "L'Elysée et l'armée française ne confirment pas la mort d'Abou Zeid" . lemonde.fr. 28 February 2013 . The Nation (Pakistan) . 3 November 2013 . Aktuálně.cz - Víte co se právě děje . Reuters. 13 January 2013. 2 killed (17–19 January), [1] 160 killed (24–25 January), [2] 19 killed (16 February), [3] 16 killed (24 March), 17 killed (26 March) total of 197+ reported killed "Des prisonniers crient leur détresse" (in French). Mali's new president thanks Chad for support against Islamists "Ten Chadian soldiers killed fighting Islamists in Mali" . "Malijet Mali : violents combats dans le massif des Ifoghas, faisant un mort côté tchadien, six côté jihadistes Mali Bamako" . Xinhua News Agency . 15 July 2014 . "Malijet Mali: Le soldat burkinabè, Tounougma Kaboré, conducteur au bataillon Badenya est décédé le mercredi 13 mars 2013 à Diabali (Officiel) Mali Bamako" . "Mali: au moins 35 morts dans les affrontements islamistes/Touareg à Gao" (in French). The New York Times . : |access-date= requires |url= ( help ) "Five Malians killed in ambush blamed on Tuareg: army" . "Deploring ongoing violence, UN rights expert urges Malian parties to work together towards lasting peace" .

Armed conflict in Mali that started in January 2012 For other armed conflicts that occurred in northern Mali, see Tuareg rebellion . The Mali War is an ongoing, armed conflict that started in January 2012 between the northern and southern parts of Mali in Africa. On 16 January 2012, several insurgent groups began fighting a campaign against the Malian government for independence or greater autonomy for northern Mali, which they called Azawad . The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), an organization fighting to make this area of Mali an independent homeland for the Tuareg people , had taken control of the region by April 2012. On 22 March 2012, 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. Mutinous soldiers, calling themselves the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy and State (CNRDR), took control and suspended the constitution of Mali . As a consequence of the instability following the coup, Mali's three largest northern cities— Kidal , Gao and Timbuktu —were overrun by the rebels on three consecutive days. On 5 April 2012, after the capture of Douentza , the MNLA said that it had accomplished its goals and called off its offensive. The following day, it proclaimed the independence of northern Mali from the rest of the country, renaming it Azawad. The MNLA were initially backed by the Islamist group Ansar Dine . After the Malian military was driven from northern Mali, Ansar Dine and a number of smaller Islamist groups began imposing strict Sharia law. The MNLA and Islamists struggled to reconcile their conflicting visions for an intended new state. Afterwards, the MNLA began fighting against Ansar Dine and other Islamist groups, including Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA/MUJAO), a splinter group of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb . By 17 July 2012, the MNLA had lost control of most of northern Mali's cities to the Islamists. The government of Mali asked for foreign military help to re-take the north. On 11 January 2013, the French military began operations against the Islamists . Forces from other African Union states were deployed shortly after. By 8 February, the Islamist-held territory had been re-taken by the Malian military, with help from the international coalition. Tuareg separatists have continued to fight the Islamists as well, although the MNLA has also been accused of carrying out attacks against the Malian military. A peace deal between the government and Tuareg rebels was signed on 18 June 2013, however on 26 September 2013 the rebels pulled out of the peace agreement and claimed that the government had not respected its commitments to the truce. In mid-2014, the French military in Mali ended its Operation Serval and transitioned to the broader regional counterterrorist effort, Operation Barkhane . Despite a ceasefire agreement signed on 19 February 2015 in Algiers , Algeria , and a peace accord in the capital on 15 April 2015, fighting continued. Starting in 2018, there was an increase in rebel attacks in the Sahel , accompanied by a French troop surge. Mali experienced two successful coups in 2020 and 2021, both orchestrated by the Malian military. After the Malian coup in 2021 , the government and French forces in the country had a falling out, with the former demanding the latter's withdrawal. Amid popular Malian anti-French protests and increasing involvement in the war by both the Russian mercenary Wagner Group and the Turkish, the French withdrew their forces from the country entirely by August 15, 2022, ending their presence in the country. Ghana Business News . 14 January 2013 . Wall Street Journal . 17 January 2013 . "Chinese army soldiers conduct first mission as peacekeepers in Mali 1612131 – Army Recognition" . "Estonian government approves sending 50 troops to French-led Mali mission" . err.ee . 22 March 2018. More than 200 Portuguese troops deployed on UN peacekeeping mission to Central African Republic. "Regering keurt steun aan militaire interventie in Mali goed (Belgium sends transport planes, helicopters and military personnel)" . De Standaard (in Dutch). 15 January 2012 . "Canada sending C-17 transport plane to help allies in Mali" . cbcnews.ca. 14 January 2013 . "Czech government approved sending troops to Mali" . aktuálně.cz. 6 February 2013 . "Danmark sender transportfly ind i kampene i Mali (Denmark confirms sending transport planes to Mali skirmish)" . Germany pledges third transport plane, 20 m dollars for Mali The Guardian , Tuesday 29 January 2013 "Magyarország tíz kiképzővel járul hozzá a misszióhoz" (in Hungarian). kormany.hu. 14 February 2013. "Defense Minister says Hungary seeking involvement in Mali conflict" . politics.hu. 14 February 2013. Voice of America. 29 January 2013 . "Militari români, trimiși în misiunea din Mali" (in Romanian). Spain provides a transport plane. US to provide French air transport in Mali . "L'Elysée et l'armée française ne confirment pas la mort d'Abou Zeid" . lemonde.fr. 28 February 2013 . BBC News Online . 5 June 2020 . The Nation (Pakistan) . 3 November 2013 . Peacekeepers under attack again in Mali, as one Egyptian blue helmet dies, another seriously injured "UN peacekeeper killed in north Mali IED attack" . 3 October 2021. "Two Egyptian peacekeepers killed in Mali, four wounded" . 8 March 2022. 2 killed (21 January 2013), [47] 2 killed (6 May 2013), [48] 1 killed (2019), [49] total of 5 reported killed "Netherlands to end Mali peacekeeping contribution in May" . 15 June 2018. "Mali: au moins 35 morts dans les affrontements islamistes/Touareg à Gao" (in French). "Islamists seize north Mali town, at least 21 dead in clashes" . 27 June 2012. Baba Ahmed & Rukmini Callimachi (2 April 2012). The New York Times . There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

Armed conflict in Mali that started in January 2012 For other armed conflicts that occurred in northern Mali, see Tuareg rebellion . The Mali War is an ongoing conflict that began on 16 January 2012 with a Tuareg rebellion in northern Mali . The rebels included the secular-oriented National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), a group fighting for independence or greater autonomy of a region they called Azawad . The MNLA was initially allied with the jihadist Ansar Dine , which, in turn, was allied to other Salafi jihadist organizations such as al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and its splinter, Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA). On 22 March 2012, 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. Mutinous soldiers, calling themselves the National Committee for the Restoration of Democracy and State , took control and suspended the constitution of Mali . During the uncertainty that followed, resistance put up by government forces in the north began to melt away, enabling the rebels to capture the three provincial capitals of Timbuktu , Kidal , and Gao in three days. On 6 April 2012, stating that it had secured all of its desired territory, the MNLA declared independence from Mali , which was rejected as invalid by the African Union and the European Union . The MNLA and the jihadist groups soon found themselves at odds, unable to reconcile their conflicting visions for Azawad. Efforts to find common ground failed, and open conflict broke out between them, resulting in a decisive defeat for the MNLA. The jihadists seized control of nearly all of Azawad, with only a few towns and isolated pockets remaining under MNLA and allied militia control. The government of Mali asked for foreign military help to re-take the north. On 11 January 2013, the French military began operations against the Islamists . By the time of the 2013 presidential election , thanks to French, African, and international military support, government forces had regained most of the territory previously controlled by Islamists and Tuareg nationalists. A peace deal between the government and Tuareg rebels was signed on 18 June 2013, however on 26 September 2013 the rebels pulled out of the peace agreement and claimed that the government had not respected its commitments to the truce. In mid-2014, the French military in Mali ended its Operation Serval and transitioned to the broader regional counterterrorist effort, Operation Barkhane . In June 2015, negotiations between the government, the pro-government Platform coalition, and the rebel Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) culminated in the Algiers Accords , which aimed to decentralize the Malian state, integrate former rebels into the national army, and promote economic development in the north. Despite this, fighting between the two coalitions and various splinter groups continued periodically. In 2017, Ansar Dine, the Sahara branch of AQIM, Katiba Macina , and the rest of Al-Mourabitoun merged to form the Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) coalition, pledging allegiance to Ayman al-Zawahiri , then-leader of Al-Qaeda . From the founding of the Islamic State – Sahel Province in 2015, the proxy groups of the Islamic State and al-Qaeda in the country, in what researchers called the "Sahel exception" or "Sahel anomaly", peacefully co-existed in their fights against the Malian government and her allies. By the first half of 2018, rebel attacks had intensified significantly, and by July of that year, northern Mali had largely slipped from government control. Jihadist activity was no longer confined to the north; it expanded rapidly into central Mali. By 2020, some estimates suggested that only one-third of the country remained under government authority. The "jihadist idyll" ended in 2019 when open conflict broke out between JNIM and the ISSP. Following mass protests, elements of the Malian armed forces, led by Special Forces Col. Assimi Goïta , began a mutiny, and subsequently undertook a coup d'état against Keita in 2020. Bah Ndaw was appointed interim president, although it was presumed he would serve as a figurehead, as Goïta, being in the military, would have been controversial in the eyes of Western governments. A second coup by Goïta followed in 2021 due to differences between them and their respective camps over whether to cooperate with France or Russia. By the end of the year, hundreds of Wagner Group mercenaries, who would go on to commit several civilian massacres, began deploying across Mali. Their presence prompted strong objections from international forces, despite widespread anti-French sentiment among the Malian population. In February 2022, Canada, France, and its European partners announced a full troop withdrawal within six months, citing Wagner's presence. In 2023, the withdrawal of MINUSMA and the handover of its 12 military bases at the junta's request heightened tensions between the government and the Strategic Framework for the Defense of the People of Azawad (CSP), a coalition of the CMA and Platform. Disputes arose particularly over bases in Ber and the Kidal region, which they argued, under the accords, they were entitled to, even if small army units may be located there. They would not allow the army to take over the bases without prior negotiations. Later, after previously accusing the junta and Wagner of multiple ceasefire and human rights violations, the CMA declared war on the government, prompting most Platform groups to leave the CSP. On 30 November 2024, the members of the CSP dissolved themselves and merged into the Azawad Liberation Front , officially returning to demands for the independence of Azawad. There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ). "Canada sending C-17 transport plane to help allies in Mali" . cbcnews.ca. 14 January 2013 . "Danmark sender transportfly ind i kampene i Mali (Denmark confirms sending transport planes to Mali skirmish)" . "Iran may supply Mali with weapons, impacting West Africa and Sahel" . 31 May 2023. Voice of America. 29 January 2013 . US to provide French air transport in Mali . "Line of conflict shifts from the Donbas in Ukraine to Mali in the Sahel" . 3 September 2024. "North Korea to build munition factory in Bamako – SolaceBase" . 23 May 2023. "Ils ont été reçus par Tebboune hier : Les mouvements Azawad saluent la dynamique de paix de l'Algérie" . 27 February 2023. "Au Sahel, l'étoile pâlie de l'Algérie" . 12 January 2025. The Nation (Pakistan) . 3 November 2013 . See French military casualties in Mali and the Sahel [ fr ] for more details and citations. "EUTM Mali | Our Fallen" . eutmmali.eu . Our World in Data .