Det er i hvert fald analytikeres vurdering – men samtidig toner en humanitær katastrofe frem i horisonten med 4,3 millioner malianere, som skal hjælpes i år, og der er endnu kun indkommet en brøkdel af de ønskede midler til indsatsen.
DAKAR, 18 February 2013 (IRIN) – Militant Islamists fleeing northern Mali under pressure from French forces could undermine security in neighbouring countries from where some of the fighters are believed to hail (stammer fra).
They could also attract the support of sympathetic militias in the region, and even target countries with large expatriate communities, analysts say.
Members of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM – an extremist Islamist group that emerged in the 1990s), its splinter faction the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO), and Ansar Dine (a Tuareg group that sprung up in 2012), are believed to have retreated to Mali’s mountainous region near the Algerian border.
Their ability to carry out attacks outside Mali largely depends on the strength of their networks abroad and the extent to which military intervention (currently led by France and in which at least eight West African countries are to take part).
This, however, only galvanizes (stålsætter) opponents.
The extent of damage inflicted on these groups by French air power is unclear.
Since April 2012 conflict in the north has forced some 227.206 Malians to become displaced inside their conutry and 167.245 to take refuge in neighbouring Burkina Faso, Niger and Mauritania.
The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates 4,3 million Malians will be in need of assistance this year, but as of 13 February just 10 million of the 377 million US dollar appeal for the poor Sahelian country had been pledged.
Where are the rebels?
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http://www.irinnews.org/Report/97494/The-regional-threat-posed-by-Mali-s-militants
