New Azawadi group in Mauritania speaks out against 'genocide'

Azawadi activists have accused Islamist groups of killing their religious leaders Nouakchott – Mohammad Abeidy Sharif A new Azawadi group has been formed in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott. The Ahfad Uqba Initiative (Uqba's Ancestors), named in reference to historic Arab general Uqba ibn Nafi, aims to highlights the Azawadi community's links to Mauritania.
Speaking at the launch event, activists hailed the Mauritanian government for hosting Azawadi refugees who fled the fighting in northern Mali, adding that the Mauritanian government, led by President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, has been "doing its duty" by the Azawadis within the restrictions of regional, strategic and security concerns.
However, they said they wished to "remind" Mauritanians that some of the Azawadis dying in northern Mali "belong to the same Mauritanian families and tribes."
"Mauritania is above all loyalties," they said, "but we have feelings that need to be respected."
Members of the group claimed that the Azawadi people were being "crushed" between the armies fighting the Islamist groups that took over the northern regions of Mali last year, and the Islamist groups themselves whom they described were "wearing a false Islamic mask." They criticised the groups in question for destroying religious monuments in the region and claimed that they were responsible for the killing of senior Azawadi religious leaders.
"Azawadis are being subjected to killings and genocide and being forced from their homes. They are living in dire conditions," they said, calling on all parties involved in the conflict to "stop brutality against civilians and provide the people of Azawad with emergency relief."
Uqba's Ancestors held French forces responsible for the attacks against their fellow Azawadis, due to their military control of the region. They called on the forces to ensure security for locals, prevent the "serious violations committed by the Malian army," and ensure that aid reaches locals.
"It is in everyone's interests for moderation to take the place of extremism, and the best way to combat extremism is to protect the values that our people have spread in Azawad, West Africa, and other parts of Africa."
The group warned the Malian army that "the acts of genocide, attacks, and violations which its personnel have committed will increase ethnic resentment and remain a thorn in Mali's side," especially, they said, after French troops have withdrawn from Mali.
The Azawadi activists also called on Algeria to use its influence in the Sahel region to ensure security and relief for Azawadis. "We won't tell Algeria what to do. The people of Azawad are the same human group present in the south of Algeria which has suffered the scourge of Islamist extremism for decades and has vast experience in dealing with this issue."
Azawad, an unrecognised state situated in northern Mali, comprises the Malian regions of Timbuktu, Kidal and Gao. The territory borders Mauritania to the west and northwest, and Algeria to the north and northeast.