5, October 2023
Mali army, rebels head toward potentially decisive confrontation 0
Mali’s army is deploying towards a northern separatist rebel stronghold in a high-risk operation which could foreshadow a widescale confrontation and prove a turning point after a decade of conflict.
What’s happening on the ground?
A large Malian army convoy left the city of Gao on Monday headed towards the northern Kidal region.
It is reportedly to go first to the localities of Tessalit and Aguelhok north of the town of Kidal to take over camps being vacated by departing troops of the UN stabilisation force, MINUSMA.
The UN mission has been pushed out by the ruling junta and has been handing over its camps to Malian authorities.
The handover – which began with the camp at Ber in mid-August – is a prime factor in a recent resumption of hostilities by the separatists.
Against the backdrop of numerous armed groups vying for control, the separatists claim the UN sites should be returned to them.
The Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) – an alliance of predominantly Tuareg groups seeking autonomy or independence from the Malian state – has carried out a series of attacks on army positions since the Ber operation.
Its fighters are now regrouping in the Kidal region.
Source: AP
3, November 2023
Top Francophone army generals to soon be punished for their crimes 0
The exiled leader of the Ambazonia Interim Government has denounced the ongoing military campaign against Southern Cameroons villages and the loss of lives of civilians, stating that many of the Francophone army generals and their Anglophone acolytes will soon pay for their crimes.
On a Wednesday post on social media, Vice President Dabney Yerima said the French Cameroun genocidal machine is actively at work in the rural settlements in Southern Cameroons.
“French Cameroun war criminals and their known Anglophone advocates will soon kneel before the exemplary willpower and resilience of the Ambazonian nation; and will be punished for their crimes,” Yerima pointed out.
As of this week, at least 34 Southern Cameroonians have been killed by Francophone army soldiers among them women and children.
The exiled leader also stated that Anglophone journalists covering the war in Southern Cameroons are facing particularly high risks. Many have been killed and some have fled the country.
Dabney Yerima said due to the massive deployment of Francophone soldiers and raids on newspaper offices, journalists such as Nelly Epupa, Toto Roland Motuba and Ewang Miriam Metchane are now refugees in Europe and the US.
“The main challenge for journalists covering the Cameroon government military campaign in Southern Cameroons is their own safety” Yerima furthered.
“Journalists in Southern Cameroons have paid and continue to pay unprecedented tolls and face exponential threats,” Vice President Dabney Yerima concluded.
By Chi Prudence Asong