There's a line that creeps into most reports on the Mali situation which troubles me. Here's an example from the Washington Post: "Many fear that the uncertainty in Mali will allow militant groups such as al-Qaida to find a new refuge in the Sahara nation." This "new refuge" in Mali is 3 years old. This "new refuge" arose since the arrival of US and French secret services and troops in the region, not the other way round. This "new refuge" has been permitted, sanctioned/encouraged/accepted/known about - choose your verb - by the Mali and the Algerian governments and by the US and…

Untitled document I have a Tuareg friend, we'll call him M'Ag. M'Ag is young, gently spoken, generally quiet and, on first meeting, shy. I met M'Ag deep in the desert - he helped out his uncle and cousin as they took me round the Adrar Des Iforas on my first visit to Aguelhoc.  When we broke down in the middle of nowhere it was M'Ag who sorted us out. Over the years M'Ag has been so dependable for me that he now drives my vehicle, surplantng his cousin, who was less so. When M'Ag came to meet me in Bamako before my 2010…

News from Timbuktu is still rather depressing I'm afraid, though, as ever, there are spring shoots.   Anyone who visits the ancient city and passes through town in the late afternoon as the heat of the day is wearing off and as the schools empty out onto the streets, will probably remark at the surprising modernity and familiarity of the scene. Sharply dressed boys in sequined jeans cajoling colourful head scarfed girls in figure hugging pants. Shades and make up, caps and wigs, short skirts and hip-hop boxers, peacock and hen, Arab and Tamasheq, Songai and Bambara - the evening…

Untitled document The two worlds of Mali coming through clearly in conversations with friends. Everything is as normal in Mopti, and Bamako. No queues for petrol, shops opening. Banks are off and on and nobody knows where they are going, but daily life seems to be pretty normal, if you are not Tuareg that is. For Tuareg living in southern Mali they feel as concerned as before. Some are still going to Mauritania, some contemplating going back into “Azawad”. Many Tuareg I know who were not supportive of the initial MNLA rebellion now see the MNLA as their only hope.…

Yes I know, it's getting really confusing now. The MNLA sandstorm has swept across the desert to its frontline with Mali -  the river Niger at Tmbuktu and Gao. But dark clouds have followed in their tracks. Al Qaeda in The Islamic Magreb (AQIM) and their "islamist" brothers, the newly formed Ansar Dine, are in Timbuktu and Gao. But through the dust and haze there are sgins of spring.  Much of the  media have been focussing on stories of the islamist groups getting in on the action in Timbuktu - black Al Qaeda flags being raised and sharia law imposed,…