When Abdelmalek Droukdel was named emir of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) by al-Qaeda, Mokhtar Belmoktar drifted farther south. He set up in the ungoverned dunes of neighbouring Mali, took a Malian wife and tapped into the smuggling routes that crisscrossed the Sahara, amassing arms and fiercely loyal fighters who called themselves, "The Masked Brigade." His fighters killed more than a dozen soldiers at a military garrison in Mauritania in 2005 and gunned down four French tourists there in 2007. On multiple occasions Belmoktar was declared dead but each time re-emerged to strike again. In 2008, under the direction of AQIM, Belmokhtar kidnapped two Canadian citizens and held them hostage for four years. Eventually a ransom of $1.1 million dollars was paid, and when AQIM claimed the money, Belmokhtar split from the parent organization and founded Signers in Blook. In response AQIM founded a new brigade made up mainly of Touaregs and…
Tuareg Brigade Mali
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Groups and individuals included in TRAC's database range from actual perpetrators of social or political violence to more passive groups that support or condone (perhaps unwittingly) such violence. The spectrum of violence represented by these groups is vast, from Jihadists who bomb train stations to financial institutions that transfer funds. Some groups that originally engaged in violence but have since become legitimate political parties are included to provide historical perspective. TRAC is in no way attempting to determine whether groups or individuals are terrorists -- only to convey reported information about their activities and official State status. While TRAC attempts to ensure the accuracy of its TRAC database, the entries in the database are from numerous different sources. Hence, TRAC cannot and does not warrant the accuracy of the entries in its database. The editors of TRAC may modify these entries at any time and welcome comments and suggested corrections or additions. Please write [email protected] or hit the "SUBMIT ADDITIONS" button on the page of the group profile about which you wish to comment.
