Secular Café: Islamists in Mali

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Islamists in Mali Jul 14th 2012, 13:10 We've already had some threads about Mali recently http://www.secularcafe.org/showthread.php?t=19922 http://www.secularcafe.org/showthread.php?t=20762 As the situation develops, it looks worse and worse. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012...-threat-europe Quote: Islamist groups are using their hold over key urban areas of Mali to recruit, arm and train growing numbers of fighters and could pose a threat to Europe within two years, government and security sources believe. The al-Qaida-linked rebels have taken exclusive control of the north, having pushed out secular Tuareg separatists. "If Islamists continue to control vast areas of Mali where they can do what they like, then this will pose a direct threat to Europe," a senior western diplomat in the capital, Bamako, said. "You cannot forget how close this region is to Europe. They are currently recruiting people in northern Mali, offering them money, training and weapons. If this continues, it is a matter of time before it affects Europe directly." Northern Mali has been under insurgent control since the government was toppled in a military coup in March. Tuareg rebels – who are demanding an independent state of "Azawad" in the Sahara – initially joined forces with groups backed by al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), including Ansar Dine, Mujao and the Nigerian terrorist organisation Boko Haram... ...While some Malians are joining the Islamic insurgency, others are arming themselves to return the country to secular, civilian rule. In Bamako, several hundred young people have joined the military wing of Action des Jeunes pour Sauver le Nord (AJSN), a voluntary army that claims it has weapons and will imminently deploy to the north. "We are ready to die to save our country. We are warriors – it's in our history – and it is simply a question of patriotism that we are prepared to sacrifice ourselves personally to reclaim the north," said Mohamadou Diouara, 26, founder of AJSN. Diouara – a native of Gao and former youth leader – claims to have 1,500 members being trained by soldiers who volunteer to help the recruits, as well as access to weapons and the backing of the Malian army, whom his members have pledged to support. Many Malians are being increasingly radicalised against the insurgents by the destruction of ancient monuments in Timbuktu, where Islamists have attacked mausoleums and the city's 14th-century Djingareyber mosque, and by the growing humanitarian crisis in the region. Northern Mali was already facing a food crisis before the coup and capture of towns by rebel fighters. Now aid agencies warn the situation is deteriorating further, with critical shortages of essential goods and services and numerous human rights violations

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