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EPILOGUE 329A further problem in both tribal and communal politics was the growingindependence of the Iforgoumoussen. Originally a clan within the Ifoghas, theyhad moved towards a status closer to that of an independent tribe during thecolonial period. The creation of the I-n-Tedjedit Commune sketched abovetemporarily resolved long-standing conflicts over pastoral rights, but this solutiongenerated even more independence for the Iforgoumoussen, who now had‘their’ Commune, led by their strong man: Ibrahim Bahanga. A common soldierin the rebellion, Ibrahim Bahanga was now famous for his bravery, driving andfighting skills, which gained him the honorary nickname ‘Lion of the Tamesna’.After the rebellion, he was integrated in the ranks of the Malian Army as aCorporal, which was a bitter demotion to him as he had held the rank ofSergeant Major in the MPA. But he was not successful in securing a higher rankbecause he lacked strategic and political insights. His independence from thepolitical elite in Kidal as Mayor of I-n-Tedjedit would prove a political liability.Although he was now formally incorporated in the legal power structures of thestate, his political behaviour was closer to that of Alla ag Albachir in the 1940sand 1950s: militarily defying the authorities with ever growing demands. Afterall, he had won his position in politics with the abduction of the electoralcommittee in Tidarmène and the attacks on all and sundry in late 2000 to obtain‘his’ Commune. After the GSPC hostage crisis, he allegedly showed the GSPCdrivers a number of secret roads in Northern Mali, only known to the mostskilled ishumar drivers, in return for a large sum of money, which gave himmore leeway in his enterprises.Then there was the unresolved and very bitter fight between the Ifoghas andimghad dating from the mid-1990s when ARLA and MPA had fought eachother. After the MPA had ousted the ARLA from their bases in the Adagh withthe help of the Malian Army, the imghad had been driven out of Kidal and awayfrom their pastures in the Adagh. Although they were gradually ‘allowed’ backin the city, their position remained precarious and the Ifoghas kept demanding asubservient attitude, under the ideology of tefoghessa, which became harder andharder to retain, leading to a hardening of the idea of timgheda. In the middleyears of the last decade, a small group of integrated officers of imghad originsrose to prominence in the Malian Army. Most prominent is Elhajj Gamou, animghad born around 1964 in Tidarmène, a village in the Cercle of Ménaka thatis part of the disputed zone around Tedjerert. During the rebellion he was anofficer within the ARLA. 25 He integrated in the Malian Army in 1996, andfollowed an intensive officer training at the Military Academy. In 2001 he waspromoted Lieutenant Colonel and stationed in Gao as regimental commander.25Dao, B., ‘Insécurité au Nord: l’Etat entretient le conflit ethnique’, Le Républicain,16/01/2009. http://www.maliweb.net/category.php?NID=39658