Ibrahim Ag Inawalen

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Ibrahim Ag Inawalen
BornAbeibara, Kidal Region, Mali
DiedMay 18, 2015
Northeast Kidal region, Mali
Cause of deathFrench airstrike
Allegiance Mali (until 2006)
Ansar Dine (2012-2015)
RankColonel (Malian Army, until 2006)
Commander of Aguelhok (Ansar Dine, 2013-2014)
Emir (Ansar Dine, 2014-2015)
Battles/warsMali War

Ibrahim Ag Inawalen, nom de guerre Bana, was a Malian soldier and jihadist in Ansar Dine.

Biography[edit]

Ag Inawalen was born in Abeïbara, Kidal Region, Mali.[1] He was a colonel in the Malian army until 2006, when he deserted.[2][1]

When the Mali War began in 2012, Ag Inawalen joined Ansar Dine and became commander of the group in Aguelhok.[3] In January of 2012, he took part in the Battle of Aguelhok and may have been responsible for the massacre of the Malian garrison.[2] Ag Inawalen was also responsible for the stoning of a couple in the city who had conceived children outside of marriage.[1]

In 2013, Ag Inawalen took part in the Battle of Tigharghar against French and Chadian forces.[4] He then participated in negotiations with Mohamed Akotey in the release of four hostages from Arlit, and afterward Serge Lazarevic.[1][5] Following the death of other jihadist leaders, Ag Inawalen became the second-in-command of Ansar Dine around 2014 to 2015.[1]

Ag Inawalen was killed in a French airstrike the night between May 17 and 18, 2015. That night, he met with Abdelkrim al-Targui, a leader of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, in an area northeast of Kidal. The two jihadists and their two bodyguards were killed in the operation.[6][7]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Qui sont les deux jihadistes abattus par l'armée française au Mali?". RFI (in French). 2015-05-21. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  2. ^ a b "Au Mali, la terreur perd des têtes mais pas pied - Libération". archive.wikiwix.com (in French). 2015-05-21. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  3. ^ Notin, Jean-Christophe (2014). La guerre de la France au Mali. Tallandier. p. 591.
  4. ^ "Otages: quand la France utilisait Bana pour obtenir des libérations". RFI (in French). 2015-05-22. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  5. ^ Daniel, Serge (2014). Les mafias du Mali; Trafics et Terrorisme au Sahel (in French). pp. 181–182.
  6. ^ "Aqmi: al-Targui, lié à la mort de plusieurs Français, tué au Mali". RFI (in French). 2015-05-20. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  7. ^ "Deux chefs jihadistes tués au Mali: une opération longuement préparée". RFI (in French). 2015-05-20. Retrieved 2023-12-06.