BAMAKO, Mali – As security concerns deepen across the Sahel, a Malian journalist has warned that alliances between rebel and extremist groups are not unprecedented, pointing to similar cooperation during the country’s 2012 crisis.
Moussa Sayon Camara, a Malian journalist, explained that the current situation mirrors past events. “This is not the first time those groups come together to do attacks and to do such things,” Camara said. He recalled that during the 2012 invasion of Mali, when cities including Kidal, Gao, and Timbuktu fell into the hands of various groups, they also made alliances to fight against Malian soldiers and authorities to claim territory.
Camara emphasized that it is “not the first time those groups come together to undertake some actions against Malian integrity” and against peace in the country.
He also clarified a key shift in how the Malian government now views armed actors operating within its borders. “Now in Mali there is no difference between what people call separatists and those people call… other people,” Camara stated. “The government considers all of them as terrorists. There is no divisions or no specifications of name.”
According to Camara, while some groups may claim to have different visions, they share the same methods: “using force, using arms against their own country.” As insecurity continues to evolve across the Sahel, concerns remain over the growing complexity of armed groups operating in the region.
