Yoro Ould Daha |
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| Birth name | Mahri Sidi Amar Ben Daha |
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| Born | January 1, 1978
Djebok, Mali |
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| Died | February 9, 2020
Tamkoutat, Mali |
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| Cause of death | Assassination |
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| Allegiance |  MOJWA (2012-2014)
 MAA-Loyalist (2014-2020)
Platform (2014-2020) |
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| Rank | Military commander (Platform) |
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| Battles / wars | Mali War
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Mahri Sidi Amar Ben Daha, nom de guerre Yoro Ould Daha, was a Malian Arab warlord who fought in Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MOJWA) and the Arab Movement of Azawad's pro-government faction.
Biography
Daha was born on January 1, 1978, to a Lemhar Arab family in Djebok, Mali.[1][2][3] He was a child when the Tuareg rebellion of the 1990s broke out, but received his first military training during the conflict.[4] Daha claimed to have fought in the 1990s rebellion in clashes between Arabs and Kuntas, and then later between Arabs and Ganda Koy.[4] Before the Mali War broke out in 2012, Daha joined the ranks of MOJWA, becoming a senior officer in the Islamic police of Gao.[5][6] He joined Katiba Osama Bin Laden, led by Ahmed al-Tilemsi.[7] In 2014, Daha claimed to have never fought against the Malian Army.[7] His rationale for joining MOJWA, according to a 2014 interview, was that MOJWA consisted of drug traffickers and those looking for money, and protected them from the MNLA.[7]
Daha served as the leader of the mafia wing of MOJWA, engaging in drug trafficking.[8] He stated in 2014 that he was working with drug traffickers before joining MOJWA.[7] When French forces intervened in Mali through Operation Serval, Daha fled to Algeria, with his house in Gao being looted by residents.[7] Daha joined the Arab Movement of Azawad and Platform in April 2014, becoming one of the military commanders of the movement.[7] That July, he clashed with MNLA, HCUA, and rebel MAA fighters at a military base in Tarkint.[2] He then fought in the Battle of Tabankort in 2014, becoming the military commander of Platform.[9]
Daha was arrested by the French Army on the night between July 28–29, 2014, on suspicion of being involved in a July 14 attack that killed a French soldier. He was questioned for four to five days, and then handed to Malian authorities in Bamako. Daha was released by Mali on August 7.[9][10][11] In an August 2014 interview, Daha reaffirmed his pro-Malian and pro-French positions, but claimed that he believed France was sympathetic to the MNLA.[7]
Daha was arrested in Niamey by Nigerien authorities on December 3, 2015, but was released shortly afterward.[12] The United Nations adopted sanctions against Daha on July 9, 2019, for violating the Algiers Accords. He was banned from traveling outside of Mali in response.[13][3] Daha and his bodyguard were assassinated by unknown men traveling on motorcycles at a camp in Tamkoutat, Gao Region, on February 9, 2020.[3]
References
External links
