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Thread: Mali mainly, 2012 coup, drugs & more

  1. #361
    Council Member CrowBat's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbfpo View Post
    This is a rather odd incident if true. Why would Algeria shoot down a (US) drone over Mali?
    Except for a crash in this case, an alternative reply would be - just for example (and provided it was Algeria at all) - that there is a very clearly defined 'no go' area for US forces along the border between Algeria and Mali.

    This zone is up to 150km wide (on N-S axis) in NW Mali, and between 30 and 80km wide in N and NE Mali. There are four commercial corridors through it though (all on N-S axis).

    Washington (and Paris) agreed to respect this zone (in exchange for rights of US [and French] planes to 'cut the corner' over SW and SE Algeria), and usually respected it so far: the EP-3s from Rota were not flying there, the MQ-1s and RQ-4s from Sigonella were not flying there etc. Surely, back in March this year, the US several times requested 'special permission' to fly its E-8s and EP-3s into that zone, and these were sometimes permitted to approach to less than 20km to the Algerian border.

    Algerians are cooperative in regards of pursuing common enemies, but there are limits of this cooperation.

  2. #362
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    Two different reports; the murder of two French journalists last week appear to have acted as a catalyst and for a moment Mali is in the foreground.

    Nothing is simple, crime, terrorism and money intersect:
    It’s possible that the two murders were in retaliation for what could be understood as a breach of contract. It’s also possible that the huge amount of money simply convinced some other group to try its luck.
    Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/11/op...it_ee_20131111

    Or the tribal / communal nature of politics in Mali:
    As a result of France's political decision not to “arm-twist ” Bamako into talks with the MNLA, a large swathe of Mali is currently ungovernable making a return of Touareg extremist groups like groups Ansar Dine and MUJAO very likely.
    Link:http://www.opendemocracy.net/arab-aw...siness-in-mali
    davidbfpo

  3. #363
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    Default Drugs, crime and fragile states: a British view

    A UK FCO paper 'Traffickers and Terrorists: drugs and violent jihad in Mali and the wider Sahel', which is short and interesting:https://www.gov.uk/government/upload...Terrorists.pdf

    It ends with:
    Winning the war against both trafficking and
    terrorism will mean building and maintaining the legitimacy of the state in the region.
    Nothing like setting an impossible task! Why not persuading the locals the opposition are bad for them? Too much wine, bye.
    davidbfpo

  4. #364
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    David,

    At the root of a lot of the problems in the Sahel region is state legitimacy and the deeper issue isn't whether the states could be made to function better but whether they should exist in the first place.

    The US will learn this somewhere along the line and abandon this region to former colonial masters, who will then abandon it when they get tired.

    It's back to the 100 years war and the Peace of Westphalia.

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    Quote Originally Posted by KingJaja View Post
    David,

    At the root of a lot of the problems in the Sahel region is state legitimacy and the deeper issue isn't whether the states could be made to function better but whether they should exist in the first place.

    The US will learn this somewhere along the line and abandon this region to former colonial masters, who will then abandon it when they get tired.

    It's back to the 100 years war and the Peace of Westphalia.
    An interesting article that ties into KingJaja's comment:

    http://www.disamjournal.org/articles...tatecraft-1120

    Assumptions that good governance can only exist through state structures often result in flawed, ineffective policy responses that satisfy bureaucrats without altering ground conditions. Consider West Africa, where American officials are more concerned with financing capacity building programs to support dysfunctional states (Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and so on) than identifying and influencing religious and tribal power brokers, even if they don’t hold formal elective office. And in Mexico, law enforcement in the six northern states collapsed without disrupting U.S.-Mexico trade volume, which grew from $332 billion in 2006 to a record $493.5 billion in 2012
    .

    From South Ossetia in the Caucasus to Somaliland in East Africa, much of the world operates under political structures that are difficult for American pundits and policymakers to understand, let alone influence. As this map of geopolitical “anomalies” illustrates well, anarchy is the new normal in the 21st century world.[1] Consequently, an initial step towards more perceptive policy approaches might be to manage, accept, or even encourage unconventional governance as a productive avenue through which American power could be regularly exercised. This approach would view unelected leaders in general, and ungoverned space in particular, as conditions to be effectively handled rather than problems to be permanently solved.
    http://www.fpri.org/articles/2013/10...ury-statecraft

    If American policymakers reconsider Mali’s security situation through a paradigm other than Westphalian structures and Bismarckian statecraft, they might reach different policy conclusions. By acknowledging the obvious—Tuareg leaders, not the Mali government, control northern Mali—Washington might also seek to persuade the Tuaregs to become allies instead of enemies. Instead of teaching Malian soldiers tactics they already know and logistics they can never afford, officials could make clear that the United States fought the Tuaregs because their leaders chose to embrace radical Salafist Islam as an end to achieve independence, and not because the U.S. opposes a de facto, or even a de jure, independent Tuareg area.

    While wantonly partitioning off the ethnic region might upset the president of Mali, doing so eliminates the uncomfortable and unnecessary façade that the national government is the country’s most significant political force. That it is not is obvious to anyone in West Africa. As FPRI’s Ahmed Charai recently wrote, Morocco’s King Mohammed VI carries regional influence based on his inherited Islamic title “commander of the faithful.” The king’s recent initiatives to promote religious moderation among radicalized Tuareg imams may preserve Washington’s regional interests more effectively than any state-building endeavor ever could.

  6. #366
    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Default Dutch to plug hole in desert

    From FP Blog:
    he Dutch military is planning to deploy a team of dozens of military intelligence operatives in Mali in the coming weeks, part of a U.N. peacekeeping mission ....The Dutch contribution ... include a team of special-forces troops and four Apache attack helicopters -- marks a rare return by a European power to a U.N. peacekeeping mission in Africa
    More details behind a FP pay-wall alas.

    A curious deployment, especially of the Apaches; the Dutch join the French and Ukraine as the only European nations with military contingents with the UN in Africa, I exclude observers and non-UN training teams. A statement based on the IISS Military Balance 2013.
    davidbfpo

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    Not sure if this link was already posted and buried (quick search fails me), but
    ten minutes of Urban Three-Stoogery with AKs is worth the repost.

    Bonus hilarity at the 5.20 mark: Private Einstein, part of a team sent to the building where snipers are suspected to be on the roof, empties a magazine down towards his comrades. Said team has no direct commo with it's command group). This video so needs to be set to music.

    Ground Zero - Mali was shot in Gao, Mali, on February 21, 2013. It's basically the first legitimate combat footage to come out of the war there. Normally the French ban journalists from the frontlines and film a sanitized version of the fighting themselves and then distribute it to the media.

    In this case, the insurgents came to us: they slipped into Gao overnight on small boats and used suicide bombers to blast their way into government buildings. The French left the fighting to the Malian army for most of the day as a test of their combat abilities. Malian soldiers, while very brave, are almost completely untrained and had great difficulty fighting less than a dozen jihadists, some of whom were children. They fired wild bursts of automatic fire everywhere, destroying the city center. The Malians soon ran out of ammunition and had to wait for the French to show up and save the day.
    http://www.vice.com/ground-zero/mali
    Last edited by AdamG; 12-07-2013 at 06:03 PM.
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    As with the prey of South African snipers in the DRC recently pathetic excuses for soldiers such as these can be taken out systematically and can be held off indefinitely. Obviously these insurgents can't shoot either.

    Moving down an open road is not bravery... is is idiocy


    Quote Originally Posted by AdamG View Post
    Not sure if this link was already posted and buried (quick search fails me), but
    ten minutes of Urban Three-Stoogery with AKs is worth the repost.

    Bonus hilarity at the 5.20 mark: Private Einstein, part of a team sent to the building where snipers are suspected to be on the roof, empties a magazine down towards his comrades. Said team has no direct commo with it's command group). This video so needs to be set to music.


    http://www.vice.com/ground-zero/mali
    Last edited by JMA; 12-07-2013 at 08:13 PM.

  9. #369
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    Default Not winning "hearts & minds"

    An AP report on the murder of Tuareg's who remained in the towns re-captured and handed over to the Malian military:http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268778/con...tguid=csYdabdI

    Incidentally I noted with amazement that the Malian military, in the two film clips, relied upon mobile-phones for comms.
    davidbfpo

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    Default Air Force's Forgotten Mission to Mali

    Air Force's Forgotten Mission to Mali

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    Council Member davidbfpo's Avatar
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    Fuchs,

    A good catch the official French post-action report, which does have an English summary.

    I'd missed that what appear to be lorry-borne heavy artillery was deployed and the logistic aspect is covered.
    davidbfpo

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    Quote Originally Posted by davidbfpo View Post
    Fuchs,

    A good catch the official French post-action report, which does have an English summary.

    I'd missed that what appear to be lorry-borne heavy artillery was deployed and the logistic aspect is covered.
    I get their newsletter, automated my 'catching' here.

    Language barriers are troublesome, so I make a conscious effort to penetrate them.

  14. #374
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    Question Re: Newsletter

    Quote Originally Posted by Fuchs View Post
    I get their newsletter, automated my 'catching' here.

    Language barriers are troublesome, so I make a conscious effort to penetrate them.
    Could you provide us with a link for that?
    I could be of help with the language.

    Happy Easter to all, in whichever way you celebrate it.
    Piranha, a smile with a bite

  15. #375
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    Default Is AQ’s regional affiliate in West Africa dead, at least for now?

    A short NYT article, which appears to be based on unofficial statements from French & US officials and not that we have not heard this language before:
    So the group that terrorized half a country, northern Mali, in the heart of West Africa for much of 2012, taking over its major towns, and threatening other nations in the region, has been reduced to a pale remnant of its former self. It is no longer the pre-eminent threat to the fragile states in West Africa’s Sahel region — the band of desert and semi-desert running just below the Sahara.
    Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/30/wo...=tw-share&_r=1
    davidbfpo

  16. #376
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    Default The Tuareg "have not gone away"

    Via NYT:
    Separatist Tuareg rebels launched an assault on the city of Kidal in northern Mali over the weekend, killing eight soldiers, storming government buildings and taking 30 hostages in a “declaration of war” on the government, officials said Sunday.The attack was apparently prompted by a visit to Kidal on Saturday by the newly appointed prime minister, Moussa Mara, highlighting regional hostility toward the central government in Bamako and casting further doubt on the viability of reconciliation efforts in the wake of the turmoil experienced by the country since 2012.
    Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/19/wo...hostages.html?

    Noteworthy as IMHO the seperatist Tuareg have been quiet since the French-supported intervention. Almost a return to "normal" in Mali.
    davidbfpo

  17. #377
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    Default Traffic control in The Sahel

    An odd headline IMHO:
    France ends Mali offensive, redeploys troops to restive Sahel
    Followed within by (slightly edited):
    The new "counter-terrorism" operation, codenamed Barkhan, will kick off in the coming days and is being implemented in partnership with five countries -- Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad -- Le Drian said.

    He added that some 3,000 French soldiers would be part of the operation, 1,000 of whom would stay in northern Mali and the rest would be deployed in the other countries....which will have its headquarters in the Chadian capital N'Djamena

    Link:http://news.yahoo.com/france-ends-ma...83027863.html?
    davidbfpo

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    Default Northern Mali Conflict 2012

    Northern Mali Conflict 2012

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  19. #379
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    Default "Operation Barkhane"

    Presented separately from the Mali thread, to highlight the unique aspects of this Operation.

    Operation Barkhane, named after a crescent-shaped sand dune, will involve the deployment of 3000 military personnel across the vast Sahel region, backed by six fighter jets, 20 helicopters and three drones. The mission will form a belt of French military presence in five northern African countries: Burkina Faso, Mali, Chad, Niger and Mauritania.

    Operation Barkhane will bring Operation Serval, the French military intervention in the north of Mali since January 2013, to a close.

    The French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said that with Operation Barkhane France will counter the threat of terrorism in the region. "There still is a major risk that jihadists develop in the area that runs from the Horn of Africa to Guinea-Bissau," he said.
    22 July 2014
    http://www.english.rfi.fr/africa/201...nfluence-sahel

    Hollande has said the Barkhane force will allow for a "rapid and efficient intervention in the event of a crisis" in the region.

    Hollande also stressed the importance of engagement by African forces.

    Chadian President Idriss Deby agreed, saying it is not always France’s job to ensure security in the region, and Africans must also take charge.
    http://m.france24.com/en/20140719-ho...n-west-africa/

    In terms of division of labor between France and the G5 Sahel, four permanent military bases have been established:

    - headquarters and air force in the Chadian capital of N'Djamena under the leadership of French Général Palasset;

    - a regional base in Gao, north Mali, with at least 1,000 men;

    - a special-forces base in Burkina Faso's capital, Ouagadougou;

    - an intelligence base in Niger’s capital, Niamey, with over 300 men; the air base of Niamey, is important as it hosts drones in charge of gathering intelligence across the entire Sahel-Saharan region;

    - aside from the four permanent bases, several temporary bases will be created with an average of thirty to fifty men, where and when required.
    http://nationalinterest.org/feature/...barkhane-11029

    At its core, Barkhane is intended to focus on cross-border security and to combating the threat of terrorism emerging from Islamist militants. By shifting toward a regional focus, and away from bi-lateral relationships, Palasset will gain valuable distance from internal politics within each of the partner states. This distance means flexibility, and further enhances Barkhane’squick deployment capabilities.

    Palasset’s force is set to be provisioned as follows:

    20 helicopters (assumedly a mix of Gazelle light attack helicopters, and transport Puma or and Cougar transport helicopters). It is unclear if Eurocopter Tiger attack helicopters will be included in the mission force structure.
    200 armoured vehicles (a mix of Véhicule de l’Avant Blindé (VABs), Véhicule Blindé de Combat d’Infanterie (VBCIs), Engin de Reconnaissance à Canon de 90 mm (ERC 90s Sagaie’s);
    ten dedicated transport/reconnaissance aircraft,
    six fighter planes (Rafaele Mirage 2000’s)
    three drones (Harfangs).
    “When the Sahel is threatened, Europe and France are threatened,” Hollande told French soldiers in Chad during a three day visit to West Africa in late July. While also pushing French trade, the president used the visit through Ivory Coast, Niger, and Chad to solidify support amongst these countries for Operation Barkhane. “There still is a major risk that jihadists develop in the area that runs from the Horn of Africa to Guinea-Bissau” says French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. “The aim is to prevent what I call the highway of all forms of traffics to become a place of permanent passage, where jihadist groups between Libya and the Atlantic Ocean can rebuild themselves, which would lead to serious consequences for our security.”
    http://www.africandefence.net/operat...nder-the-hood/

    The existence of a single operational command in Chad (1 300 troops) for the whole Sahel is a new element. Operation Barkhane has a base in Mali (1 000 troops), an intelligence centre in Niger (300 soldiers) and a special forces centre in Burkina Faso. While Côte d’Ivoire (with its 550 troops) will serve as an operational base to support the deployment, the bases in Senegal (350 troops) and Gabon (450 troops) remain regional cooperation centres. Some 3 000 soldiers will be mobilised in a wider area of action to support the G5 members (Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Chad)

    France provides human, financial and logistical means, but this deployment, dedicated to the fight against armed terrorist groups, will not affect the French military’s traditional missions. Under military cooperation, African armies will continue to receive training and equipment to carry out joint actions with French troops. The presence and/or transit of French forces in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Chad are regulated by cooperation agreements that date back to the 1960s and have been updated since. Mauritania, for its part, signed an agreement with France to fight terrorism in November 2013.

    Three priorities of France’s policy in Africa – Africanisation (supporting African capacities), Europeanisation (including French action in European policy) and multilateralism (for France to act in a multilateral framework, such as the United Nations) – have been adapted to the realities in the Sahel following the final declaration of the December 2013 Elysée Summit for Peace and Security in Africa. However, with its intervention in Mali, France is alone on the Sahel front.
    http://www.defenceweb.co.za/index.ph...ace&Itemid=111


    French Government website
    http://www.defense.gouv.fr/operation...ation-barkhane
    A scrimmage in a Border Station
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    Two thousand pounds of education
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  20. #380
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    Ooops.

    ...if the French high command had thought more about the etymology of the word, it might have gone for another animal name.

    The word barkhan is of Russian-Turkistan origin, said to have been coined by a Russian naturalist, Alexander von Middendorf, in 1881. The worrying aspect of it for France is not the Russian-Turkistan association, but the year 1881. While von Middendorf was busy coining the word barkhan for his dunes, France was experiencing a military nightmare in the middle of the Sahara.

    The story of the disastrous Flatters expedition of 1880-81 is imprinted on the French colonial psyche, partly because of the absurdity of the project, partly because of its foolhardy planning and leadership, but mostly for its gruesome and grizzly details, which so shocked France that a halt was placed on further colonial penetration into the Sahara for almost 20 years.

    Flatters set out from Ouargla in November 1880 at the head of a mixed column of over 90 men to reconnoitre a route for a railway across the Sahara. Such a grandiose scheme, designed to bring France closer to her Sahelian and West Africa territories, had been given impetus by the Americans succeeding in building a railway across their continent 11 years earlier.

    The eve of their departure was celebrated with a grand dinner and the finest champagne, but also much nervousness, as local Chaamba tribesmen warned that they would run into trouble if they tried to enter Tuareg territory.

    As the column headed south, Tuareg drew Flatters deeper into their country, before dividing his force at a water hole and massacring half of them. The column had got to within 200 kms of today’s border with Niger. The survivors were allowed to escape, but only for the Tuareg to play cat and mouse with them.

    First, Tuareg offered them dates that had been crushed with efelehleh (Hyoscyamus muticus falezlez), one of the world’s most deadly plants. Most of those who ate it died in delirium and agony. The survivors then watched the Tuareg decapitate three of their Chaamba guides (most of whom, knowing the ways of the Tuareg, had refused the dates), while their accompanying Tidjaniya mokhadem (holy man) was split with a single blow of a broadsword from head to hips.

    The remaining survivors continued their desperate trudge northwards, with those falling asleep being killed and eaten, as cannibalism became the means of survival. The last surviving Frenchman, the ailing Sergeant Pobéguin, was shot and eaten after much discussion as to whether a Frenchmen should not be treated with more respect. On 4 April 1881, 11 half-dead Chaamba crawled into Ouargla to tell the tale.

    Those involved in Operation Barkhan will not wish to be reminded of the symbolism and memories of 1881.
    - See more at: http://www.middleeasteye.net/columns....tes2FVkG.dpuf
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