Insight into mechanisms of al-Qaeda in the Maghreb

Ahmed Adel

Eighteen years after the 9/11 attacks, some branches of al-Qaeda continue to operate actively, including the Sahel and Sahara branch which is led by Mokhtar Belmokhtar.

Belmokhtar last appeared in August 2014 when he swore allegiance to al-Qaeda commander Ayman al-Zawahiri. The man, known to be the most radical Algerian, has not appeared since then.

According to some security reports, Belmokhtar was killed during a security operation by the Chadian army in March 2013. Nonetheless, al-Qaeda refuted these reports.

Belmokhtar is one of the most dangerous wanted figures. Born on June 1, 1972, he travelled to Afghanistan in 1989 to receive military training.

At the end of 2012, Belmokhtar formed a new group called “Blood Signatories”. Since then, Belmokhtar and his group have been acting independently in the Sahara region.

His group carried out a number of attacks, most importantly the one which took place in January 2013 when it attacked a natural gas plant in the Algerian desert. The attack left 38 people dead. The group also took a number of foreigner nationals hostage.

Belmokhtar then posted a video, in which he introduced himself as a member of al-Qaeda. This was months after he broke away from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

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In August 2013, Belmokhtar launched a new group under the name “Mourabitoun”. This group merged into Blood Signatories. Both groups also joined the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa which is led by Ahmed el Tilemsi. Belmokhtar and el Tilemsi agreed to hand over the command of the group to an Egyptian national, namely Abu Bakr al-Mohajir. This opened the door for the official emergence of al-Mourabitoun.

Al-Mourabitoun is active in northern Mali, southern Algeria, Niger and Mauritania. It is mainly made up of the former members of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

In April 2014, al-Mohajir was killed by French troops in the border area between Niger and Mali. In December 2014, el Tilemsi was also killed during a French airstrike in northern Mali. This opened the door for major confusion within the group.

Abu al-Walid al-Sahrawi then took over the command of the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa. He then swore allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) group.

On May 14, Belmokhtar said al-Sahrawi’s oath of allegiance to IS was made without approval from the Consultative Council of his group. This forced al-Sahrawi to renew allegiance to al-Qaeda and its leader.