Turkish Center: Pretending to Save the Country; France 'Occupies' Mali

3 years ago

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A Turkish center considered that "Many cities did not have the opportunity to become a legendary city like the sacred city of Timbuktu in the state of Mali, even though it was founded in the late 12th century."

The Turkish Center for Human and Social Research "Insamer" published an article by the writer and researcher Serhat Orakci stating that: "Spirituality was very high in the city in northern Mali for a long period of time, to the extent that it was believed that it was blessed with God's grace”.  People of the city were proud to have never believed or worshiped any God other than Allah.

Painful Transformation

Orakchi stated that "the city maintained this advantage until the end of the 19th century, but after it was defeated by French colonialism, the French looted Timbuktu's cultural heritage, famous for its manuscripts, and transferred some of them to Paris."

He continued: "In the 21st century, France launched a military operation against northern Mali under the pretext of (fighting terrorism) and repelling the armed groups that seized the city.

In 2013, France launched the military operation "Serval" and was able to expel terrorist groups from Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal, but the operation caused the scattering of terrorist groups in large areas.

When French President Francois Hollande visited the holy city of Mali in early 2013, the people greeted France with the slogan "Long live France" (Vive la France).

"It would be really unfair for the people of Timbuktu to denounce their attitude, and it would be better to consider it as reflection of the outburst of emotions caused by the helplessness, despair and unknown fate that awaits them rather than explaining it in terms of the well-known Stockholm Syndrome" Oracchi said.

He added that “The armed ethnic and religious organizations went to the extent of declaring an independent state in Timbuktu and other northern cities after the Mali army was expelled from the region, during the period between 2012-2013, and they cut off communication between the northern regions and the capital, Bamako, for about a year."

Today, the number of foreign military personnel in the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), that is mainly located in northern Mali, including Timbuktu, is about 15,000 within the scope of Operation Barkhane.

France launched the military operation "Barkhane" in Mali in 2014, with the aim of eliminating armed groups in the African Sahel region and limiting their influence, and the United Nations sent 15,000 soldiers to stabilize Mali, but the security threat has not been eliminated.

Military personnel from 60 different countries such as the United States, England, Germany, Norway and Belgium, especially the French army, work in Mali, along with police forces from 29 countries.

Yet, news and comments point out that terrorist attacks in the Sahel region, including Mali, have increased with the increase in the number of foreign military personnel since 2013. Meaning that the region is revolving in a "big vicious circle", while the presence of armed organizations attracts foreign forces, the presence of foreign soldiers presents an appropriate ground for the growth, diversity and spread of armed groups, the researcher explains.

He continued, "More than two million people have been displaced in the northern regions of Mali, which witnessed two military coups and a large-scale military intervention led by France since 2012. There is no infrastructure, families or housing complexes that have not been negatively affected by the conflict and instability in the region, especially in Cities such as Timbuktu, Gao and Kidal.

"The chronic underdevelopment problem has exacerbated in this region, where ethnic groups such as the Tuareg, Arabs, Songhai and Fulani live" Orakchi articulated.

He pointed out that "The problem called by Tuareg as Azawad movement in this region has now developed into a completely different dimension from the traditional Tuareg revolutions. In fact, it began in 1963, and was repeated in 1991 and 2006, while the various extensions of the Maghreb base and (Islamic State) continue to maintain its influence in northern Mali at any cost."

Although Mali agreed to sit at the negotiating table under the “Algeria Agreement” in 2015 with the Coordination of Azawad Movements Coalition, which includes the Azawad National Liberation Movement from the Tuareg. The negotiations ended up with a partial solution to the problem. However, “Al-Qaeda” and “Islamic State” armed organizations are still active in the region. Which indicates that Mali "entered a vicious cycle", stresses the writer.

Vicious Cycle

The leader of the Supporting Group of Islam and Muslims close to al-Qaeda, Iyad Ag Ghali, claimed that he may hold a meeting with the Malian government, on condition that the foreign military forces depart from Mali, especially France.  From its side, the Malian government refused this condition and insisted on the importance of its presence. Thus, Mali is embroiled in a tight spot" Orakchi elucidated.

He explained further: Although it guarantees the territorial integrity of Mali, one of the main problems facing the peace process is the slow implementation of the agreement.  Mainly the agreement on issues such as the transfer of armed elements from the CMA to the Malian security forces, and sharing the economic and political power, it has remained a dead letter until now.

Therefore, more efforts are needed for the agreement to remain in force.

France, on its part, announced that it would not reduce its military presence in Mali, even though it is facing an increasing difficulty in managing the situation in the north of the country. After 8 years, the Malian people no longer want to chant the slogan “Long live France” anymore, according to the Turkish researcher.

He added, "Reactions against France increased, especially in the anti-government street protests that began in 2020, and the most important reason for this is that the problems that exploded in Mali during the period between 2012-2013 have not been resolved despite the passage of a long time."

Orakchi clarified “A number of armed groups of religious and ethnic origins are still active in northern Mali, and Mali continues to suffer a catastrophic failure in the fight against terrorism. Despite the billions of dollars in military spending and media propaganda, the news of kidnappings, armed attacks, suicide attacks and the death of International Peace Security Forces members continues.

He pointed out "The presence that France enthusiastically started in Mali is far from achieving what was expected, despite the presence of more than 5,000 French soldiers in the field. In other words Paris reached a dead end in Mali, and cannot push Germany to mobilize more forces in the region. The latter has currently more than 1,500 soldiers in Mali

He added, "Although its cooperation with countries such as Chad and Algeria relieves it militarily, this does not reduce the financial burden that France bears at all. Furthermore, the killing of at least 19 people as result of an air raid on a wedding party on January 3, 2021 by French forces, and the killing of a group of young men who went fishing in Gao, made it worse and more complicated for France."

He added, "It is also noticeable that the French authorities, who claimed that they targeted terrorists, are far from accepting the results of the investigation of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali regarding the killing of civilians and the allegations of the Malian state and taking responsibility for what happened."

The writer said: “The financial crisis that began in 2012 has spread at the regional level today, which has severely affected the entire region, especially Niger and Burkina Faso, and some institutions that are aware of the seriousness of the current situation, have become more cautious and away from a military solution in Mali.”

Oracchi mentioned in his article some of the striking results in a report published by the British “Chatham House” research center last March, where the report of Marc Antoine Pérouz de Montclaus confirms that “France, which was seen as (savior) in the beginning, has become increasingly (occupying) Mali.”

The report also stressed that "Every possibility that can bring peace to Mali, including negotiations with jihadist groups, must be evaluated."

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