As Mali’s new interim president Dioncounda Traore pledged a “total, relentless war” against Tuareg rebels that have seized the country’s north, Nicolas Sarkozy warned of a “a terrorist or Islamic state in the heart of the Sahel.”
Police in Tunis used tear gas and baton-charges against unemployed protestors demanding jobs and relief. President Moncef Marzouki decried the violence, but criticized the protesters for holding an unauthorized demonstration.
While Tuareg rebels of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) claim to control the north of Mali, a growing number of Islamist militant groups are also declaring power across much of the vast desert territory.
The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), the Tuareg rebel army which has seized control of Mali’s north, declared the independence of the region—and repudiated “Islamic groupsicles” attempting to exploit the struggle.
Libya’s National Transitional Council refused a request from the International Criminal Court to hand over Saif al-Islam Qaddafi, son of the ex-dictator. Officials stated they will keep Saif al-Islam prisoner, and he will stand trial within the country.
A day after Mali’s northern city of Timbuktu fell to Tuareg rebels of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), Ansar Dine, an Islamist faction that had been cooperating with the rebels, has reportedly seized control there.
The head of Libya’s Toubou people called for international intervention after deadly clashes at the southern oasis of Sabha. Issa Abdel Majid Mansur said the Toubou Front for the Salvation of Libya was being revived, and broached secession.
Tuareg rebels of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) launched an attack on Mali’s northern city of Kidal—following through on a promise made in the wake of last week’s coup d’etat to advance on government-held towns.
Amnesty International released a report accusing the ruling National Transitional Council (NTC) in Libya of allowing the abuse and torture of supporters of former leader Moammar Qaddafi by unofficial militias that control detention facilities.
French officials said Tuareg guerillas of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) killed some hundred residents at a village they occupied in northern Mali. Over 50,000 have fled fighting in the remote Saharan region.
The National Transitional Council has lost control of Libya’s west to a new federation of militias that accuses the NTC of trying to “hijack the revolution.” Sufis celebrated the birth of the Prophet in Tripoli despite threats and attacks from Salafists.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay, joined by Amnesty International and Doctors Without Borders, charged that several detainees have been tortured to death in recent weeks by forces of Libya’s transitional government.
