Qaddafi’s Weapons, Taken by Old Allies, Reinvigorate an Insurgent Army in Mali -- New York TimesBAMAKO, Mali — In life, he delighted in fomenting insurgencies in the African nations to the south. And in death, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi is doing it all over again.
Hundreds of Tuareg rebels, heavily armed courtesy of Colonel Qaddafi’s extensive arsenal, have stormed towns in Mali’s northern desert in recent weeks, in one of the most significant regional shock waves to emanate directly from the colonel’s fall.
After fighting for Colonel Qaddafi as he struggled to stay in power, the Tuaregs helped themselves to a considerable quantity of sophisticated weaponry before returning to Mali. When they got here, they reinvigorated a longstanding rebellion and blossomed into a major challenge for this impoverished desert nation, an important American ally against the regional Al Qaeda franchise.
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Update #1: Aid workers: 15,000 flee Mali to Niger, Mauritania amid rebellion by ethnic Tuareg group -- Washington Post/AP
Update #2: Mali rebels rearm with Libyan weapons -- UPI
My Comment: My prediction .... if the Tuareg rebels continue to win on the battlefield, expect western forces to become involved to stop them sooner rather than later.
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