Mali War

An armed conflict in Mali that began with a Tuareg-led rebellion in 2012 and expanded to involve Islamist insurgents, Malian forces, and foreign military interventions.

Tuareg Rebellion (2012): A rebellion launched in northern Mali in 2012 by Tuareg separatists seeking an independent homeland. Its opening campaign triggered the wider conflict.
Azawad: A name used for the arid northern region of Mali and for a proposed Tuareg-led independent state. Separatist claims to this territory framed the rebellion’s political aims.
Iyad Ag Ghaly: A Malian Tuareg militant and politician who founded the Islamist group Ansar Dine. His shift from Tuareg separatist politics to Islamist insurgency altered the uprising’s aims.
Algiers Accord: A 2015 peace agreement between Mali’s government and northern armed groups. It sought to settle the rebellion’s political grievances but was only partly implemented.
National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad: A Tuareg separatist movement that declared independence for Azawad in 2012. Its independence project differed from Islamist groups’ goal of imposing religious rule.
Ansar Dine: An Islamist armed group founded in Mali by Iyad Ag Ghaly in 2011. It joined the northern uprising but pursued Islamist rule rather than Tuareg independence.
Tuareg rebellions: A series of uprisings by Tuareg communities against states in the Sahara and Sahel. Earlier revolts and unresolved grievances preceded the 2012 uprising.
Amadou Sanogo: A Malian army officer who led the 2012 coup against President Amadou Toumani Touré. His coup fractured military and political authority during the northern rebellion.
Central Mali conflict: A cycle of insurgency and communal violence that intensified in central Mali from 2015. Violence spread beyond the northern rebellion into the country’s central regions.
Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb: An Islamist militant organization active in North Africa and the Sahel, affiliated with al-Qaeda. Its transnational jihadist agenda was distinct from the rebellion’s local separatist claims.

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