View source for Tuareg rebellion (1962–1964)

{{Short description|Rebellion in Mali}}
{{see also|Tuareg rebellion (1990–1995)|Tuareg rebellion (2007–2009)|Tuareg rebellion (2012)}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Tuareg Rebellion (1962–1964)
| partof            = [[Tuareg rebellion (disambiguation)|Tuareg rebellion]]s
| image             = 
| caption           = 
| date              = 1962&ndash;1964<br>({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|year1=1962|year2=1964}})
| place             = Northern [[Mali]]
| territory         = 
| result            = Suppressed; [[Ceasefire]]
| status            = 
| combatant1        = {{flagicon|Mali}} [[Mali]]
| combatant2        = [[Tuareg]] tribal and clan groups
| commander1        = 
| commander2        = 
| strength1         = 7,000+
| strength2         = 1,500 (maximum)
| casualties1       = 
| casualties2       = 
| notes             = 
}}
{{Campaignbox Tuareg rebellions}}
[[Image:Tuareg area.png|180px|right|thumb|Areas where significant numbers of Tuaregs live]]
The '''Tuareg rebellion''' of 1962–1964, sometimes called the '''First Tuareg Rebellion''' or the '''Alfellaga''', was an insurgency by populations of what is now northern [[Mali]] begun shortly after the nation achieved independence from France in 1960.<ref>Baz Lecocq. "Alfellaga: Chapter Four" in  [http://ebooks.brillonline.nl/book?id=nij9789004139831_nij9789004139831_i-433 # Disputed Desert: Decolonisation, Competing Nationalisms and Tuareg Rebellions in Northern Mali]. Brill (2010). {{ISBN|9789004139831}} pp.181-226</ref><ref>Baz Lecocq. [http://dare.uva.nl/document/65901 IV. Alfellaga: The revolt of the Kel Adagh (1963-1964)] in [https://books.google.com/books?id=DRM_AQAAIAAJ That desert is our country: Tuareg rebellions and competing nationalisms in contemporary Mali (1946-1996)]. Universiteit van Amsterdam, (2002).</ref> This short revolt could only be suppressed with the entry into the conflict of Morocco and Algeria in 1963, which handed over the 35 leaders of the counter-rebellion, then imposed a military authority on the Tuareg regions.<ref>{{Cite book|title=التينبكتي: الطوارق عائدون لنثور،|publisher=منشورات منظمة تاماينوت|pages=46|language=ar}}</ref>

Many in the sparsely populated and ethnically distinct north of Mali along with some in southern Algeria and northern [[Niger]] expected an independent Tuareg, Berber, and Arab nation to be formed by the [[Sahara desert]] regions when [[French West Africa|French Colonialism]] ended. This combined with dissatisfaction over the new government led some [[Tuareg people|Tuareg]] in Northern Mali to rebel in 1963.

The first Tuareg attacks began in northern Mali in early 1962 with small, “[[Hit-and-run tactics|hit and run]]” raids against government targets. The attacks escalated in size and destructiveness through 1963, resulting in very unsettled conditions in the Tuareg-populated north.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Kalifa|first=Keita|date=1 May 1998|title=Conflict and conflict resolution in the Sahel : The Tuareg insurgency in Mali|url=https://permanent.access.gpo.gov/lps12312/carlisle-www.army.mil/usassi/ssipubs/pubs98/tuareg/tuareg.pdf|journal=United States Government Publishing Office|pages=1–46}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>

However, the Tuareg attacks did not reflect a unified leadership, a well-coordinated strategy or clear evidence of a coherent strategic vision. The insurgents generally depended on their camels for transportation and were equipped mainly with unsophisticated and rather old small arms, unlike the Malian armies who owned Soviet weapons, and the support of Algeria and Morocco. They also failed to mobilize the Tuareg community as a whole. While estimates of their numbers are highly speculative, it is unlikely that rebel combatants ever numbered more than about 1,500.<ref name=":0" />

Still, the government reacted quickly and harshly. Mali's army, well-motivated and now well-equipped with new Soviet weapons, conducted vigorous counterinsurgency operations. By the end of 1964, the government's strongarm methods had crushed the rebellion. It then placed the Tuareg-populated northern regions under a repressive military administration. Many of Mali's Tuareg fled as refugees to neighboring countries. While the government had succeeded in ending the rebellion, its coercive measures alienated many Tuaregs who had not supported the insurgents. Atrocities and human rights abuses on both sides contributed to a climate of fear and distrust in the north. And while the government subsequently announced a number of programs to improve local infrastructure and economic opportunity, it lacked the resources to follow through on most of them. As a result, Tuareg grievances remained largely unaddressed, and a seething resentment continued in many Tuareg communities after 1964. Clearly, the problem of instability in the north had simply been deferred, not resolved.<ref name=":0" />

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://cartogracy.com/conflict/tuareg Cartogracy: Tuareg Independence Movement]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tuareg rebellion (1962-64)}}
[[Category:Rebellions in Mali]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1962]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1963]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1964]]
[[Category:1960s in Mali]]
[[Category:Rebellions in Africa]]
[[Category:Tuareg rebellions]]
[[Category:Berberism]]
[[Category:Civil wars in Mali]]
[[Category:20th-century rebellions]]
[[Category:1961 in Mali]]
[[Category:1962 in Mali]]
[[Category:1963 in Mali]]
[[Category:1964 in Mali]]