Africa: Malian Security Forces Push Into Rebel Territory
Refugees tell harrowing stories of life under the Islamist militants
By Nima Elbagir and Ingrid Formanek CNN
January 25, 2013
Malian security forces have made their deepest gains yet into territory controlled by Islamist militants, taking control of the city of Hombori, a military official told CNN on Friday.Hombori is 150 miles away from the rebel stronghold of Gao, and is in an area that the militants have controlled for about 10 months. Details of the fighting were not immediately available.
Mali's military offensive against the militants has gathered pace in the past two weeks, with backing from France and other international allies.
Refugees tell harrowing stories of life under the Islamist militants who hold northern Mali in an iron grip.
But the French-based International Federation for Human Rights said it is “very alarmed” by reports that Malian soldiers are themselves carrying out extrajudicial killings and abuses as they counterstrike.
France has 2,150 soldiers on Malian soil, with 1,000 more troops supporting the operation from elsewhere.
Between 700 and 800 African troops from Benin, Nigeria, Togo and Burkina Faso have arrived in Mali, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said. Senegalese troops and up to 2,000 from Chad are on the way, she said.
French involvement in the conflict began on January 11, the day after militants said they had seized the city of Konna, east of Diabaly in central Mali, and were poised to advance south toward Bamako. Until 1960, Mali had been under French control.
Ethnic Tuareg rebels of the separatist party MNLA, who had returned to Mali well-armed from fighting for late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, staged a military coup last year against the Malian government.
Islamic extremists capitalized on the chaos, carved out a large haven in Mali's north and imposed a strict interpretation of Sharia law. The Islamists banned music, smoking, drinking and watching sports on television. They also destroyed historic tombs and shrines.
Those events stoked fear among global security experts that Mali could become a new hub for terrorism.
The effects of the fighting have not been contained to Mali.
An al Qaeda-linked group that took responsibility for a massive hostage-taking at a natural gas facility in Algeria this month said they did so in retaliation for Algeria allowing France to use its airspace to fight the Islamist militants in Mali.
At least 37 hostages lost their lives when Algerian forces ended the standoff by storming the complex.
The dead included Japanese, Filipino, American, British and Algerian citizens.
The Norwegian oil company Statoil on Friday said that two of its employees were among the victims. Tore Bech, 58, and Thomas Snekkevik, 35, were killed, the company said, adding that three of its employees remain missing.