Labbezanga (also spelled Labbézanga) is a village in the
Gao region
Gao ( Bambara: ߜߊߏ ߘߌߣߋߖߊ tr. Gao Dineja) is a region in northeastern Mali. The capital city is Gao.
Geography
The region is bordered to the north by Kidal Region, to the west by Tombouctou Region and Taoudénit Region, to the east b ...
of
Mali
Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...
located on the
Niger River
The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through Mali, Nige ...
, bordering
Niger
Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...
.
Military history
The
Malian Armed Forces
The Malian Armed Forces (, FAMa) consists of the Army (), Republic of Mali Air Force (), and National Guard. They number some 7,000 and are under the control of the Minister of Armed Forces and Veterans. The Library of Congress as of January 200 ...
operate a border post at Labbezanga.
Between June and August 2020, the
French Armed Forces
The French Armed Forces (, ) are the military forces of France. They consist of four military branches – the Army, the Navy, the Air and Space Force, and the National Gendarmerie. The National Guard serves as the French Armed Forces' milita ...
of
Operation Barkhane
Operation Barkhane (French language, French: ''Opération Barkhane'') was a counterinsurgency operation that started on 1 August 2014 and formally ended on 9 November 2022. It was led by the French military against Islamist groups in Africa's S ...
erected a
bastion fort
A bastion fort or ''trace italienne'' (a phrase derived from non-standard French, meaning 'Italian outline') is a fortification in a style developed during the early modern period in response to the ascendancy of gunpowder weapons such as c ...
in Labbezanga in a
Vauban style.
When it was first built, ''
Le Figaro
() is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It was named after Figaro, a character in several plays by polymath Pierre Beaumarchais, Beaumarchais (1732–1799): ''Le Barbier de Séville'', ''The Guilty Mother, La Mère coupable'', ...
'' called the fortress "impregnable." The camp was shifted to the
Malian Armed Forces
The Malian Armed Forces (, FAMa) consists of the Army (), Republic of Mali Air Force (), and National Guard. They number some 7,000 and are under the control of the Minister of Armed Forces and Veterans. The Library of Congress as of January 200 ...
on July 23, 2020.
2023 attack
Labbezanga is deep in territory controlled by the jihadist groups
Jama'at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin
Jama'at Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (, JNIM; , GSIM; ) is a Salafi jihadism, Salafi Jihadist organisation in the Maghreb and West Africa formed by the merger of Ansar Dine, Al-Mourabitoun (militant group), al-Mourabitoun and the Saharan branc ...
(JNIM) and the Islamic State – Sahil Province (ISSP). The Malian military camp has been the target of many jihadist attacks, including one in July 2023 that injured a civilian. In early 2023, the Malian junta that
took power in 2021 demanded the evacuation of
MINUSMA
The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (, MINUSMA) was a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali. MINUSMA was established on 25 April 2013 by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2100 to stabilise ...
by the end of the year. Around this same time, the Malian Army began cooperating with the Russian
Wagner Group
The Wagner Group (), officially known as PMC Wagner (, ), is a Russian state-funded private military company (PMC) controlled 2023 Wagner Group plane crash, until 2023 by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former close ally of Russia's president Vladimir Pu ...
after the junta kicked the French of
Operation Barkhane
Operation Barkhane (French language, French: ''Opération Barkhane'') was a counterinsurgency operation that started on 1 August 2014 and formally ended on 9 November 2022. It was led by the French military against Islamist groups in Africa's S ...
out a year prior.
Two attacks were launched by ISGS on December 3; one in
Ménaka
Ménaka (Berber languages, Berber: ⵎⵏⴾⴰ) is a town and Communes of Mali, urban commune in Ménaka Cercle and Ménaka Region in eastern Mali. It is the seat and the largest town in the ''cercle'' and region. The town is set amidst the rocky ...
and one in Labbezanga. The attack in Menaka targeted the pro-government
Movement for the Salvation of Azawad
The Movement for the Salvation of Azawad (; Abbreviation, abbreviated MSA) is a Tuareg people, Tuareg political movement and armed group in Azawad, Mali. It was founded on 2 September 2016 by Moussa Ag Acharatoumane.
History
The MSA was found ...
(MSA) and
GATIA
The Imghad Tuareg Self-Defense Group and Allies (, abbreviated GATIA) was an armed group in Azawad, Mali. Most of its 500 to 1,000 fighters were Imghad Tuaregs, and the group supports the Malian government.
History
GATIA was founded on 1 ...
militias, and briefly ended after an hour of fighting.
ISSP attacked the Malian fort at Labbezanga while fighting at Menaka raged, with the Menaka attack intended to divert Malian attention and forces away from Labbezanga.
ISSP fighters seized weapons, ammunition, and fuel, and torched the camp before abandoning it.
Malian officials stated in a report that night that several dozen jihadists were killed and twenty were captured across both attacks, but these reports were unverifiable.
In later reports, the Malian army stated it had conducted air and land counteroffensives against the group.
RFI stated that between thirty and forty Malian soldiers were killed in the attack.
The Malian junta denied the capture of the camp, but photos released by the Islamic State's
Amaq News Agency
Amaq News Agency () is a news outlet linked to the Islamic State (IS). Amaq is often the "first point of publication for claims of responsibility" for terrorist attacks in Western countries by the Islamic State. In March 2019, Amaq News Agency w ...
showed the fighters capturing the base. The raid was likely the first confrontation between Wagner mercenaries and ISSP fighters since the mercenaries arrived in Mali earlier that year.
After the attack subsided, Nigerien soldiers from across the border visited the base to aid Malian soldiers.
Aftermath
On December 23, 2023, Malian colonel
Ibrahim Samassa visited the camp at Labbezanga, which was repopulated by Malian soldiers led by Souleymane Dembele.
Samassa congratulated the soldiers in defending the base after the attack on December 3.
Malian counteroffensive operations were called Operation Moniko, and lasted from December 3 to January 25, 2024. Malian officials claimed that Operation Moniko killed sixty-five jihadists and arrested forty-two others.
In popular culture
Labbezanga is mentioned in the movie ''
Sahara
The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...
'', based on the book by
Clive Cussler
Clive Eric Cussler (July 15, 1931 – February 24, 2020) was an American adventure novelist and underwater explorer. His thriller novels, many featuring the character Dirk Pitt, have been listed on ''The New York Times'' fiction best-sell ...
. The two adventurers, Dirk Pitt and Al Giordino, stop at Labbezanga when they first enter Mali. It is described as one of the greatest ports in West Africa in the 19th century. The port is also a place of trade. Most of the villagers are fishermen, and the rest herd animals, such as goats.
References
{{reflist
Populated places in Gao Region