Tuareg Rebels: “We Won’t Give Up the Fight For an Independent State”

The Tuareg rebels of Azwad are due to pursue their rebellion until they get their independent state in Northern Mali, said Akli Souleymane, a senior official at the Azwad separatist movement.Mr Souleymane told Echorouk reporter Faouzi Houamed that the rebels are not concerned by the coup staged in Bamako, saying the fight against the AU backed up Malian army to get independence in Northern Mali is going on. He said the rebels would reject any dialogue, with the coup stagers, neglecting the principle of independence in Northern Mali.He further added that the rebels are holding 200 Malian prisoners of war, adding that the rebellion movement is making success on the ground, denying however report alleging link with al-Qaeda branch in the Sahel. The rebel official further charged Mali government of offering refuge to militants of al-Qaeda, “given that there are terror-training camps near military barracks in the city of Timbuktu.” On the ground, the military official said Azwad forces are 50 km away from the city of Gao; 10 km from Kidal; and 40 km from Timbuktu, stressing that the Tuareg rebels have not lost any battle yet, and they do not have any prisoner taken by the Malian forces. The Azwad Tuareg rebels are fighting to carve out their own independent state in Northern Mali in accordance with a map that comprises the three cities of Gao, Kidal and Timbuktu.