| Battles of Inabohane and Ebahlal | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Mali War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 MNLA |  al-Mourabitoun | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 4 killed 1 injured | 7 killed 9 captured | ||||||
Between April 29 and 30, 2014, clashes broke out between National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) fighters and Al-Mourabitoun in the villages of Inabohane and Ebahlal, near Bourem, Mali.
Clashes between Tuareg rebels of the MNLA and jihadists from al-Mourabitoun broke out in early April 2014. In late April, a shooting occurred in the Kel Hendek area of Kidal Region. [1] MINUSMA also reported clashes near Tessalit. [2]
Fighting broke out on April 29 when MNLA and al-Mourabitoun fighters stumbled into each other in rural areas of Bourem Cercle. A battle first broke out in Inabohane, and ended on April 30 in Ebahlal. [2] [3] The MNLA reported that two to four rebels were killed and three were wounded compared to six or seven jihadists killed and nine taken prisoner. [4] This was revised to four Tuareg rebels killed and one injured. [4] They also stated that the prisoners were of Algerian, Malian Arab, and Tuareg descent. [4]
While the Malian Army did not claim knowledge of the clashes, MINUSMA sources reported similar information to the MNLA. [2]
The 2012 Tuareg rebellion was the early phase of the Mali War; from January to April 2012, a war was waged against the Malian government by rebels with the goal of attaining independence for the northern region of Mali, known as Azawad. It was led by the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) and was part of a series of insurgencies by traditionally nomadic Tuaregs which date back at least to 1916. The MNLA was formed by former insurgents and a significant number of heavily armed Tuaregs who fought in the Libyan Civil War.
The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad or the Azawad National Liberation Movement, formerly the National Movement of Azawad, is a terrorist organization based in northern Mali.
Ansar Dine (Arabic: أنصار الدين ʾAnṣār ad-Dīn, also transliterated Ançar Deen; meaning "helpers of the religion" also known as Ansar al-Din was a Salafi jihadist group led by Iyad Ag Ghaly. Ansar Dine sought to impose absolute sharia across Mali. The group took over the city of Timbuktu in 2012, which prompted the French-led intervention, Operation Serval.
The Battle of Gao was fought between the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) and the Islamist Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA), along with its ally Ansar Dine, in Gao between 26–28 June 2012. By the 28 June, Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal, the three biggest cities in the disputed secessionist region of Azawad within what is recognised as Malian territory, were under the control of Ansar Dine and its Islamist allies.
The Mali War is an ongoing conflict that started in January 2012 between the northern and southern parts of Mali in Africa. On 16 January 2012, several insurgent groups began fighting a campaign against the Malian government for independence or greater autonomy for northern Mali, which they called Azawad. The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), an organization fighting to make this area of Mali an independent homeland for the Tuareg people, had taken control of the region by April 2012.
The Second Battle of Ménaka was the last battle fought by the state of Azawad, as they were defeated by an Islamist coalition.
The following is a timeline of major events during the Northern Mali conflict.
The Battle of In Arab was a two-day-long armed confrontation between a unit of the MNLA and a group of MOJWA fighters. The battle resulted in an Azawad victory but both sides suffered casualties.
The Battle of Idelimane took place during the Internal Conflict in Azawad.
On July 26, 2017, clashes broke out between the pro-government GATIA Imghad Tuareg militia and anti-government Idnane Tuareg rebels from the Coordination of Azawad Movements.
The battle of Kidal took place between July 21 and 22, 2016 between GATIA, a pro-government militia consisting of Imghad Tuaregs, against the Coordination of Azawad Movements, consisting of Ifoghas Tuaregs.
Between December 24–25, 2015, Ansar Dine militants attacked National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) positions in Talahandak, Mali. Ansar Dine captured the MNLA outpost, and then ambushed CMA reinforcements.
On August 7, 2015, jihadists from Al-Mourabitoun and Katiba Macina attacked the Byblos Hotel in Sévaré, Mali. The attack was one of the largest attacks against civilians in Mopti Region during the Mali War, and led to the deaths of thirteen people, including five civilians.
On May 11, 2015, a Malian convoy was ambushed by Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) fighters in Tin Telout, Tombouctou Region, Mali. The ambush was the last conflict between the Malian government and CMA before the signing of the Algiers Accords.
Mahri Sidi Amar Ben Daha, nom de guerre Yoro Ould Daha, was a Malian Arab warlord who fought in Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA) and the Arab Movement of Azawad's pro-government faction.
Between December 10 and 11, 2014, French forces ambushed militants from al-Mourabitoun near Tabankort, Gao Region, Mali. The ambush led to the death of Ahmed al-Tilemsi, the founder of MOJWA and a key figure in al-Mourabitoun.
Abdou Aïssa, nom de guerre Sultan Ould Bady, is a Malian jihadist and drug trafficker. He co-founded the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA) with Hamada Ould Mohamed Kheirou and Ahmed al-Tilemsi, and founded Katibat Salahadin, a katiba within MOJWA that later reformed in the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara after Bady defected.
On October 16, 2014, clashes broke out between the pro-government GATIA miltiia and the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad in N'Tillit, Mali.
Between July 19 and 22, 2014, pro-government rebels from GATIA and other militias clashed with rebels from the MNLA, HCUA, and dissident MAA in Tabankort, rural Gao Region, Mali. Clashes were paused after MINUSMA intervened.
On July 11, 2014, clashes broke out between pro-government militias led by GATIA and rebel militias led by the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) in Anefif, Mali. The battle was the first major confrontation between pro-government militias and rebel groups since the start of the Mali War in 2012.