Mohamed Ag Najem (alias ''Ag Mohamed Najem'', alternatively spelled ''Mahamed Ag Najim'') is an

Azawadi Azawad, or Azawagh (Tuareg: Azawaɣ, or Azawad; ), was a short-lived unrecognised state lasting between 2012 and 2013. Azawagh (''Azawaɣ'') is the generic Tuareg Berber name for all Tuareg Berber areas, especially the northern half of Mali ...

colonel, who is the

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

of the

National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ...

(MNLA) army.

Biography

He is thought to be born at the end of the 1950s in the

Adrar des Ifoghas The Adrar des Ifoghas (also Adrar des Iforas; Tamasheq: ⴰⴷⵔⴰⵔ ⵏ ⵉⴼⵓⵖⴰⵙ in Tifinagh; Adrar n Ifoghas; Ifoghas' Mountains) is a massif located in the Kidal Region of Mali, reaching into Algeria. It has an area of aroun ...

massif. His father of the

Kel Adagh The Kel Adagh (var. Kel Adrar, Kel Adghagh, less commonly Kel Ifoghas) are a Tuareg confederation of clans (or "''Drum-Groups''") living in the region of the Adrar des Iforas highlands in Mali. The name comes from Tamasheq "''Kel''" ("those from/ ...

tribe was killed by the

Malian army 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 ...

in the 1963 Tuareg rebellion at a time where he was a young child. At 20 years old he was recruited as a volunteer in the Libyan army under Gaddafi. He served in Libya and in

Chad Chad, officially the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North Africa, North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to Chad–Libya border, the north, Sudan to Chad–Sudan border, the east, the Central Afric ...

before returning to Mali to take part in the 1990 Tuareg rebellion led by

Iyad Ag Ghaly Iyad Ag Ghaly (, sometimes romanised as Ag Ghali; born 1954), also known as Abū al-Faḍl (), is a Tuareg Islamist militant from Mali's Kidal Region. He has been active in Tuareg rebellions against the Malian government since the 1980s – pa ...

. He then returned to Libya, rejecting the peace agreement signed between the Malian government and the Tuareg rebels. He became a colonel in the

Libyan army The Libyan Army () is the brand for a number of separate military forces in Libya, which were under the command of the internationally recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) and the Government of National Unity (GNU). Since December 20 ...

and was put in charge of an elite unit in the city of Sabha. The civil war in Libya prompted his return to his homeland. At the end of 2011, he federated his former fellow Libyan soldiers, three local

Tuareg The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym, depending on variety: ''Imuhaɣ'', ''Imušaɣ'', ''Imašeɣăn'' or ''Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group, traditionally nomadic pastoralists, who principally inhabit th ...

clans and Tuareg deserters of the Malian Army to become the military leader of the MNLA army.

References

Malian Berbers Living people Members of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad Tuareg_people Year of birth missing (living people) {{Mali-bio-stub