By scrupulously observing these people who represent JNIM and CSP-D (ex-FLA), these two groups that sow terror and desolation in Mali, a major reflex arises in our brains, but which some do not dare to formulate.

Iyad Ag Ghaly: supreme leader and founder of JNIM, a jihadist group affiliated with Al-Qaeda, operating in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger.

Alghabass Ag Intalla: operational and military leader of Azawad, a secessionist front claiming 70% of Malian territory.

Bilal Ag Achérif: leader of the political wing of Azawad.

The first thing that strikes you when observing these leaders is their physical appearance and ethnic origin. They are of Arab-Berber descent, even though some might refer to them as Tuareg. They share the same features and cultural heritage as a Saudi, Emirati, or Qatari citizen. This also explains the ease and promptness with which Saudi Arabia grants them access to its media platforms for interviews. In short, they are close relatives.

However, a real observation is clearly visible: more than 90% of the jihadists who fight for them on the ground are mostly Black, that is to say Fulani or Bambara.

How can we interpret this racial contradiction between the true leaders of JNIM and Azawad, who are of Arab origin, and their soldiers on the ground, who are predominantly Black? How do they manage to mobilize Black men for a cause that, in reality, only serves their own interests, to the detriment of these same fighters? And how can we understand why Black people agree to fight against their own kind for the benefit of these leaders?

The answer lies in one word: Islam.

It was through this means that they were able to convince these men that their religious identity took precedence over their racial identity, and that their struggle would be spiritual, not ethnic. Yet, none of these Arab leaders would consider marrying their daughter to one of these Black fighters, but race, of course, had nothing to do with it.

It was therefore through Islam that they succeeded in diverting the Moussa and Coumba families from the reality of their project: a gradual demographic and identity replacement. It was through Islam that they managed to instrumentalize Black people against other Black people, without the latter feeling the need to question, even for a moment, the meaning of what they were doing.

Do you now understand what the famous "we are Muslims before we are Black" costs us?

It costs us what makes us human, what allows us to make informed decisions: namely, reason, reflection, the brain. It takes all of that away! We become zombies, ready to devour ourselves!

Ultimately, what fate awaits all these men who claim to be jihadists and fight in the service of these groups, regardless of their ethnicity (Fulani, Bambara)? Will their fate resemble that of the Senegalese riflemen at the Thiaroye camp?

Once their sinister task is accomplished against their own compatriots, will these fighters not be betrayed?

The logic is inescapable: no sensible leader would allow men in his ranks who have agreed to attack their own brothers, both by blood and culture. They represent a constant risk and an inconvenient testimony.