What are the important cultural events in Kidal?

The Kidal region was one of the first to fall into the hands of rebels, some separatist, others Salafist, when the insurrection broke out in 2012, the aftermath of which plunged Mali into the turmoil it knows today again. It then came under the sole control of the Salafists, and was taken over by the separatists in 2013 in the wake of the French intervention. In June, the rebels prevented the constitutional referendum from being held in the region. Kidal was also an abscess for fixing tensions between Bamako and Paris. For some, such as Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maïga, France created an enclave there from where terrorism spread to the rest of the country by allowing only the separatists to take it back in 2013 and by preventing the Malian army from entering it. Paris refutes these claims. When MINUSMA left its Kidal camp on October 31, the rebels were quick to take possession, much to the dismay of the junta. But the army had already had a column ready for weeks to move towards the city. The head of the current junta, Colonel Assimi Goïta, served in Kidal in the past. Since 2013, Kidal has been under the control of the Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA), an alliance of predominantly Tuareg armed groups. Kidal occupies a special place in Sahelian geography and consciousness.

The festival au desert is held every year in Essakane, two hours from Timbouctou in Mali. This Festival seeks its origin in the big traditional Touareg festivities, such as Takoubelt in Kidal and Temakannit in Tombouctou─ a chance for communication between the widely spread communities of the desert. The festival includes songs and touareg dances, poetry readings, camel rides, games etc.