Radical Militants of al-Qaeda, Ansar al-Din Take Control of Timbuktu

The Movement of Ansar al-Din (Defenders of Faith) and al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb have reached a deal to create a military administration in the city of Timbuktu, a week after it has been seized by Tuareg rebels of Azawad.Echorouk reporter in Mauritania understands that the deal was sealed by the leader of AQIM, Abu Musaab Abdelwadud, and Head of Ansar al-Din, Iyad Ghali, as part of a plan to control the troubled northern region of Mali. The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (NMLA), which proclaimed the Azawad region as independent state, has been shadowed by the militants of the radical Ansar al-Din, who tend to impose their control over this region. While the NMLA has stated it opposes the Ansar al-Din plan, Timbuktu’s Christians and others have fled. Mohamed Amine, a local resident in Timbuktu, said in a phone call with Echorouk reporter in Mauritania that the city is under the control of militants of al-Qaeda and Ansar al-Din. “Yes, we’ve been told that al-Qaeda is running Timbuktu, while Ansar al-Din would run other cities that are under rebel control.” The situation is delicate; markets are running out of staple food, the eyewitness said. Local populations are fleeing the city for fear that armed clashes to outburst between radical militants and the Tuareg rebels of Azawad who want to get things under control in Timbuktu, ahead of building their independent state.The United Nations says more than 200,000 people have fled their homes in Mali to refugee camps elsewhere in the country and across Mali’s borders with nearby countries, including Algeria.