AQIM leader's brother seeks asylum

Lahmim Ould Hama Nouakchott – Mohammad Sharif Abeidy The brother of an al-Qaeda leader, Lahmim Ould Hama, is seeking political asylum in Mauritania, well-informed sources have revealed. The sources revealed that Ould Hama, whose brother is currently based in north Mali, has been helping Malian war refugees in medical camps since 1991. He set up the first refugee camp in Mauritania. He was arrested after the attack on the Mauritanian army in Sahel (also known as the Lemghaty incident). Al-Qaeda attacked and killed Mauritanian battalion commanders and Mohamed Ould Korv. He was released after interrogations, but he was arrested again by Touareg forces in northern Mali during an attack on Timbuktu airport. Later, he was bartered and released in a mysterious deal. Media sources said that the Secretary-General of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad, Bilal Sharif, arrived last night to Nouakchott to have a confidential meeting with Mauritanian President Mohammed Ould Abdel Aziz. No information about the visit was revealed. Sharif was appointed as head of the transitional council after the fall of Azawad. His movement is considered a part of the Mauritanian regime, as his movement confronted extremist group Ansar Al Din headed by Iyad Ag Ghali, and al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. The National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad expressed in a statement on Sunday its rejection for the attempts by the Malian government to negotiate with “terrorist groups” who have unknown agendas. The movement said they were ready for dialogue and negotiations with the Malian authorities to put an end to the suffering of their country.