BAMAKO: A witness and a combatant affiliated with radical groups in northern Mali say the Al-Qaeda-linked group has enlisted new fighters from a tribal militia to strengthen its grip on the region.
A resident of Douentza town told The Associated Press yesterday that some 400 combatants of the government-backed Gandakoy militia appear to have broken ranks and joined the militants, bolstering the radicals' edge over ethnic Tuareg rebels in the area. The witness declined to be named for fear of reprisals by the militants of the Ansar Dine group. The group's spokesman, Sanda Abou Mohamed, also confirmed that the Gandakoy "who respect our principles" arrived in Douentza, some 250 kilometers (150 miles) south of Timbuktu.
Meanwhile, Tuareg-led Mali rebels declared yesterday they had dropped claims for a separate state after the rebellion was hijacked by Al Qaeda-linked militants now holding sway in the north.
"We are seeking cultural, political and economic independence but not secession," Ibrahim Ag Assaleh, a senior member of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), told Reuters.
Ansar Dine rebels in Mali enlist new militia
