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Buck Sexton: Al Qaeda’s Mali Operations Could Ignite a Broader Jihad

Jan. 17, 2013 2:30pm

Before joining the Blaze, Buck served as an officer in the Central Intelligence Agency, assigned to the Counterterrorism Center and Office of Iraq Analysis. He […]

Before joining the Blaze, Buck served as an officer in the Central Intelligence Agency, assigned to the Counterterrorism Center and Office of Iraq Analysis. He also served as an analyst for the NYPD Intelligence Division. He has field experience in the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa. Buck has a B.A. in Political Science from Amherst College. He is a native of New York City, where he currently resides.

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buck@theblaze.com

Sexton: Al Qaeda’s Mali Operations Could Ignite a Broader Jihad

French soldiers prepare to depart for Bamako, the capital from Mali, at Kossei camp in N’Djamena, Chad, Jan. 11, 2013, in this picture released by the French Army Communications Audiovisual office (ECPAD). (R. Nicolas-Nelson/ECPAD/AP Photo)

Watch Buck Sexton and the Real News team discuss the situation in Mali and the Obama administration’s policy towards continued Al Qaeda threats on TheBlaze TV tonight at 6pm.

Few outsiders gave much thought to Mali when a military coup toppled the impoverished state’s government last April. But fast-forward to the present, and Mali has become home to an Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) franchise that operates freely, deeply entrenched in the local population, and flush with weapons. It acts as part of a coalition of Jihadist militants and separatist Touareg rebels that together have already seized an area the size of Texas and gained enough strength to overrun the whole country.

Mali’s insurgency also poses a threat beyond its borders. The presence of French troops on Muslim soil could incite an international call to Jihad. Foreign fighters currently bound for Syria or Libya may join the Malian Jihad. Entrenched Jihadists in neighboring countries- Boko Haram in Nigeria, AQIM and other aligned factions in Libya and Algeria- could view the French intervention as perfect timing for their own attacks. And as we saw in Yemen, there is always the possibility that one cell in Mali, operating with little fear of penetration or arrest by security services, tries to bring down a plane, bombs an Embassy, or even manages an attack on the U.S. Homeland.

The first phase of AQIM and its allies’ plan— collapsing Mali’s interim government and consolidating power in the aftermath—was nearly complete before France’s recent unilateral military intervention. Jihadists had already bisected the country, but with the capture of the city of Konno, defeat for the central government in Bamako appeared within reach. Only the arrival of French Special Forces, Mirage fighter jets, and helicopter gunships seemed to turn the tide—for now.

Now France has been reluctantly drawn into the lead role in its own theater of operations for the global war on terror. President Francois Hollande had hoped that a 3,300 strong force from the Economic Community of West African states (ECOWAS) would take on the stabilization role in the Mali. But those troops are slated to arrive later this year when the fight would be long over, with Jihadists firmly in charge.

So France has moved in, and from a U.S. perspective, this is a good thing. France has economic and cultural connections to Mali that give its intelligence and military better insight into what’s happening on the ground than any other western power. And despite the French penchant for sending troops to any African country once part of its colonial empire (Cote D’Ivoire, Chad), France’s multilateral, pro-U.N. credentials give it a certain leeway in the international community for such expeditions.

The extent of America’s role remains an open question. U.S. logistical assistance to French forces in Mali appears a foregone conclusion. Should the Malian Jihad drag out, however the U.S. will have to decide whether shouldering the majority cost of yet another counterterrorism intervention is worth it. With French backing, Mali’s government troops may be able to retake ground and pacify the country, town by town. Until that happens, the momentum lies with AQIM-Jihadist-Touareg alliance that has promised to make France suffer a protracted battle. And so far they appear to be dedicated to the fight and growing in strength.

The near future for Mali looks bleak and bloody. AQIM, Ansar Dine, and the rest of the Malian Jihadist rabble could have as many as 15,000 fighters. They are stocked with weapons from the looted Libyan stockpiles after Qaddafi fell (yet another unintended consequence of that NATO intervention). The Jihadist coalition is operating in a vast Saharan desert region, mixed in or allied to the local population. Stopping their advance is one thing; defeating them on their own turf will be another.

Al Qaeda is very much alive, and in few places are its ranks swelling more quickly than Mali. We may never stamp out Al Qaeda from every outpost around the world, and perhaps it is folly to try. But if America is going to have a lighter footprint in Mali, we had better hope there is a competent power to fill our shoes.

Buck Sexton is a Former CIA Officer in the Counterterrorism center specializing in Africa.

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Comments (19)

symbolsofa
Posted on January 19, 2013 at 5:19pm
So from beginning to end, Western interference resulted in horrific abuse of innocents.

We may think that war targets the oppressors, but we must realize that the objects of the oppression are the ones that suffer most.

Name me a country that doesn’t have it’s own problems that it should be working on…who are we with all of the criminality operating in our own countries, to set ourselves up as judges of other countries. Especially when from way back we have set the course that is now playing out in these places we think are so inferior to us and need us to show them the light.

what is harm if they follow sharia laws in their counries. Are they implementing the sharia laws on france. Why dont we mind our own business , why we interfere in other affairs. Did Mali Islamist rebels raised their objection on the religion being followed in france.

How many people in the US have no medical care? How many are un and under employed? How much funding has been taken from schools? Are not Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid under attack? How much pay do workers get compared to CEOs?

I could go on and on and on and on…but I have to leave now…

Give me an instance where any child in Iraq is better off now with horrible medical care, dirty water, poisoned land, no agriculture and a few hours of electricity per day. Do you know how many orphans there are now in Iraq? Do you know how many children are now born with birth defects and develop cancers? Look it up.

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- BryanB
  Posted on January 21, 2013 at 1:46am
  @symbolsofa
  
  “what is harm if they follow sharia laws in their counries”
  
  It never stays in their country, they always want to force it on others. And when you don’t agree with sharia law, they MURDER YOU !!!!!!
  
  Report this comment
symbolsofa
Posted on January 19, 2013 at 5:04pm
As French war planes bomb Mali, there is one simple statistic that provides the key context: this North African nation of 15 million people is the eight country in which western powers – over the last four years alone – have bombed and killed Muslims – after Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Libya, Somalia and the Phillipines.

This is the 8th Muslim country to be bombed (overtly) by the west in the last four years, already civilians have been killed by French jets. Can you tell me how many western countries have been bombed by Muslims in the last four years anywhere near the same scale? Of course us bombing Muslims makes them the oppressor?

In all cases the West has either started or vastly exacerbated the problems in these countries. In the US, 30,000 people die every year from guns. Little children are massacred in schools. Should some other country step in and bomb the US to solve these problems?

Maybe you should count how many Iraqi women are dead due to the war. Maybe you should investigate how many Iraqi women suffer from PTSD, have been poisoned from war residue, have lost children, family members and friends.

Maybe you should ask the women of Iraq if their lives have been made better by war.

None are better off from having been through the war. All are trying to survive horrible memories and experiences.

You must understand that the US helped Saddam Hussein into power in the first place. Our intervention and support first enabled all the abuse.

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- BryanB
  Posted on January 21, 2013 at 1:29am
  @symbolsofa
  
  “In the US, 30,000 people die every year from guns”
  
  There were 11,000 murders in the U.S. last year, and less then half of those were with firearms………
  
  Report this comment
- BryanB
  Posted on January 21, 2013 at 1:38am
  FYI…..
  
  We kill more people in the United States with Cell Phones (Texting and Driving) then with Firearms…….
  
  Report this comment
brother_ed
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 10:32pm
“There’s a bad moon on the rise.”

-Credence Clearwater Revival

Keep us posted, Buck.

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affinity
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 8:11pm
We need to let France and Mali fight their own battles. When the French got their butts kicked out of Vietnam the U.S. spent billions of devalued dollars (devalued by the greedy French) to continue to fight their losing colonial war. The French have been stabbing us in the back and not supporting U.S. policies for over 60 years. Screw the French.

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- hallkbrdz
  Posted on January 17, 2013 at 8:49pm
  I don’t care either way about France. But we have NO interests in Mali and there is NO reason for any American to die there.
  
  Bring them all home from all over the globe to protect OUR boarders – for once.
  
  Report this comment
Marsh626
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 6:16pm
We should be helping the French to murder every last one of these islamic jihadist savages. If Obama doesn’t throw the full weight of the U.S. government behind such efforts then it’s yet another example of Obama siding with muslims in a sly sort of way.

Oh, sure. We’ll pretend to help the French battle these muslim barbarians. But will we really really go for the kill? Nope. It’s Obama’s way of pretending to be tough on (islamic) terror while not really doing anything to end the growing global movement of islamic jihad activity.

The drone attacks, the half-serious effort in Afghanistan, the support for the so-called “arab srping” (islamist uprising), the killing of Osama, etc, all give the appearance of being tough on terror. But really, such efforts accomplish very little.

The “islamist” (imperialist militant fundamentalist islam) movement continues to surge globally. And non-muslims continue to be ruthlessly persecuted by muslims all throughout the entire world while Obama, the media, the NGOs and the Christian community does nothing. It’s disgusting.

If somebody is at war with you then you better be at war with them. It’s like pretending that somebody isn’t assaulting you. It’s time to fight back. And we shouldn’t be looking for some kind of tit for tat. But an end to the conflict. And the only to do that is to beat them into submission.

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John Carter 101
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 5:39pm
” The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of islam” – obama 9-25-2012.

Obama wants to make void our gun rights here in the States but openly supports the muslim brotherhood in Syria.

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- cosmic dogma
  Posted on January 17, 2013 at 7:22pm
  Absolutely correct. Ditto.
  
  Report this comment
- Walkabout
  Posted on January 19, 2013 at 11:20pm
  Events are overtaking obama.
  
  Obama or his team know how to win and/or commit electoral fraud. Obama & his team know how to work with the Brokaws of the world & slander conservatives.
  
  Would you want Brokaw or Obama in your platoon much less leading us or editing the news?
  
  I thought Al Qaeda was on the ropes? Obama said Iran was a little country & was no threat.
  
  There will be funerals in America of expatriates & Obama will be shown to be doing zip zero nada effective about it.
  
  Expatriates fuel our GDP.
  
  Report this comment
bikerdogred1
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 5:10pm
Kill them all=peace

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- BryanB
  Posted on January 21, 2013 at 1:47am
  Like !!!!!
  
  Report this comment
paulwbrown
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 4:36pm
This has to be some kind of fiction. We know after Commander in Chief Obama personally led the raid against bin Laden that Obama assured us that Al Qaeda was on the run due to his brilliant tactics.

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leonardo44
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 4:34pm
The U.S. is losing the war on terror and the Obama administration has no foreign policy platform other then to lead from behind while refusing to identify the enemy both here and abroad.

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Lord_Frostwind
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 4:31pm
My sincerest hopes for the French forces, I hope they are up for the challenges ahead. The Islamists in Africa have had a long time to entrench while we have been operating in the Middle East.

This is your fight France, show us what you’ve got.

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paulwbrown
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 4:27pm
This has to be a fiction story because Obama assured us after he killed Obama with some assistance from the SEALS that Al Qaeda was on the run, all but defeated as a threat.

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toto
Posted on January 17, 2013 at 4:25pm
Is it fair to wonder with the arms dealing Obama has done involving the Muslim Brotherhood and Al Qaeda affiliates, how many of the arms used by these “rebels” are ours? Don’t know the answer, just asking the question.

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