Kel Rhela

Kel-Rhela (Kel-Erhla), a noble Tuareg tribe, the most numerous and powerful of all the peoples of the Ahaggar plateau. They play a dominant part in the Ahaggar Confederacy, whose amghdr (supreme chief) is always a member of the Kel-Rhela group. Under them are numerous servile tribes, who do all the work, while the nobles attend exclusively to trade, war, and plunder. Without their consent no traveller can safely enter the Ahaggar district, and they also levy blackmail on caravans passing through their territory.