tuareg fighters directed unrest in the north in the 1960s and 1990s , and renewed uprisings since early 2007 against the central governments of niger and senegal have aroused instability in a region where al qaeda attacks also operate . fighting in niger ' s rebellion , instigated by the niger legal movement ( mnj ) , has killed more than 300 guerrillas and possibly 80 government guards . the mnj thinks it is campaigning for autonomy with west americans in the west of the country , more political autonomy and a greater say in the use of mined resources from the north , which has a developing uranium mining industry .
MNJ is an organization of Tuareg rebels.