anuary 17, 2013 - Bamako, Mali: First group of forty five Togolese army men arrive at Bamako International Airport to take part in the international force deployed to Mali to defend the country against the islamists rebel groups advancing from the northern areas of the country. Several insurgent groups have been fighting a campaign against the Malian government for independence or greater autonomy for northern Mali, an area known as Azawad. The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), an organisation fighting to make Azawad an independent homeland for the Tuareg people, had taken control of the region by April 2012.<br />
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