The Nigerian rebel groups of the Patriotic Liberation Front (FPL) and the Malian Strategic and Permanent Framework (CSP) met at the end of August in northern Mali to ” to strenghten “ their relations, the CSP told AFP on Monday, September 2.
Both groups are fighting against the military regimes in power in Bamako and Niamey, allied in the Alliance of Sahel States (ESA), a new confederation made up of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. The ESA has turned its back on the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and has moved politically and militarily closer to Russia.
“A delegation of the CSP led by its president Alghabass Ag Intalla met a mission of the FPL of Niger led by the commander in chief Barka Taher Hamit from August 25 to 29, in Tinzaouatène”Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadan, spokesman for the CSP, an alliance of armed separatist groups with a predominantly Tuareg base, told AFP.
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It was in Tin Zaouatine, a small Malian town located on the Algerian border, that the Malian army and its Russian allies suffered a heavy defeat at the end of July against separatists and jihadists.
At the time of the meeting between the rebels, Tin Zaouatine had been pounded by drone strikes that had caused about twenty civilian casualties, including children, according to the separatists, an elected official and a head of a local NGO. The army had claimed to target “terrorist targets”.
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“The exchanges [entre rebelles] were fruitful, focused on topics of common interest and helped to strengthen our relations.” added Mr. Ramadan. “At a time when the juntas have decided to carry out ethnic cleansing, we must organize ourselves to defend our territories and our populations,” he said.
The FPL, a rebel movement fighting for the release of Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum, who was overthrown in a coup in July 2023, confirmed the meeting on its social networks. “The discussions focused in particular on the need to sign a mutual assistance pact in the event of aggression by the ESA states.”the FPL stressed on its Facebook page.
