Katiba Macina
| Macina Liberation Front | |
|---|---|
| Leaders | Amadou Kouffa[1] |
| Dates of operation | January 2015[2]-March 2017[3] |
| Active regions |  Mali |
| Ideology | Salafist jihadism |
| Part of |  Ansar Dine[4] |
| Battles and wars | Northern Mali conflict |
The Macina Liberation Front (MLF, French: Force de libération du Macina, also known as the Macina Liberation Movement[5] or Katibat Macina) is a militant Islamist group that operates in Mali.[6] It is an affiliate of Ansar Dine.[7]
Origins and membership
In March 2012, the President of Mali Amadou Toumani Touré was ousted in a coup d'état over his handling of an insurgency in Northern Mali. As a consequence of the instability that followed, Mali's three largest northern cities—Kidal, Gao and Timbuktu—were overrun by a mixture of Islamists and Tuareg Nationalists. By July, the Tuareg were pushed out by their former allies, and the area became dominated by Jihadist groups: Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Ansar Dine, and the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO).[8]
In January 2013, the Islamists captured the town of Konna in Central Mali, after fierce fighting with Malian forces. They were driven out by French forces days later,[9] the start of a French-led military intervention known as Operation Serval. However, some fighters were able to retreat to hideouts in the mountains or deserts and regroup.[10] Ethnic Fulani veterans of the conflict make up the core of the group. The Fulani are around 9 percent of Mali's population, but are locally dominant in the Mopti Region, which was the center of the 19th Century Fulani-led Islamic state of Macina.[6]
History
The Macina Liberation Front first came to prominence in January 2015, when it claimed responsibility for attacks in central and southern Mali. The group's leader is Amadou Kouffa, a Marabout who had acted as commander for the Islamist militants in the 2013 Battle of Konna.[1]
The group has been responsible for attacks targeting United Nations peacekeepers, French troops and Malian government forces, as well as civilians.[2]
In March 2017, Amadou Kouffa appeared in a video, alongside leaders from the Saharan branch of AQIM, Al-Mourabitoun and Ansar Dine, in which it was announced that they were merging their organisations into a group called Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin.[3][11]
Kouffa was reportedly killed by the French Army in November 2018.[12] In February 2019, however, France 24 reported it had obtained a 19-minute long video that appeared to show him alive.[13]
Links with other groups
On January 10, 2020, armed clashes took place between loyal members of Amadou Koufa and a some dissidents near the commune of Dogo within the Macina Liberation Front. Several points of disagreement have led a faction of dissidents affiliated with Mamadou Mobbo to criticize Amadou Kouffa for the mismanagement of natural resources. Two combatants of Katiba Macina were killed as a result of these confrontations.
Mamadou Mobbo is one of those who helped Amadou Koufa to legitimize his fight in Macina, a region where Koufa is not originally from.
In a video published at the end of January, the group of combatants led by Mamadou Mobbo defected by pledging allegiance to the Islamic State and its Caliphate Abu Ibrahim al-Hachimi al-Qourachi, thereby seeking recognition for the Islamic State.[14]
References
- ^ a b "The Sahel's Militant 'Melting Pot': Hamadou Kouffa's Macina Liberation Front (FLM)". The Jamestown Foundation. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ a b Kathleen Caulderwood (9 May 2015). "Macina Liberation Movement: New Terror Group In Mali Threatens Peace Agreement". International Business Times. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ a b "Al-Qaeda now has a united front in Africa's troubled Sahel region". 3 March 2017. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
- ^ "Le Front de libération du Macina menace la France et ses alliés dans une vidéo". Radio France Internationale. 19 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
- ^ "Mali: Lawlessness, Abuses Imperil Population". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ a b "Mali's Islamist conflict spreads as new militant group emerges". Reuters. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
- ^ "Ansar Dine's branch in southern Mali releases first video". Long War Journal. 18 May 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
- ^ Nossiter, Adam (18 July 2012). "Jihadists' Fierce Justice Drives Thousands to Flee Mali". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
- ^ "Over 100 dead in French strikes and fighting in Mali". Retrieved 16 November 2015.
- ^ "France begins first stage of Mali military withdrawal". BBC. 25 May 2013. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
- ^ "Islamic extremist groups to merge in Mali, pledge allegiance to al-Quaida". Archived from the original on 2017-03-04.
- ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-46331928
- ^ "Exclusive: Key Mali jihadist Amadou Koufa resurfaces to deny reports of his death". France 24. 2019-02-28. Retrieved 2019-03-01.
- ^ "Jihadists in central Mali pledge allegiance to new Islamic State leader | FDD's Long War Journal". www.longwarjournal.org. 2020-01-31. Retrieved 2020-03-27.