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By Abdoulaye Massalatchi

NIAMEY, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Niger's Tuareg rebel leader Aghaly ag Alambo said on Tuesday his fighters would not lay down their arms and a pledge he made in Libya at the weekend was in fact a message from a Malian rebel group.

"President Aghaly ag Alambo never referred to an MNJ release of prisoners, ceasefire or laying down of arms," the Niger Justice Movement said in a statement posted on its website http://m-n-j.blogspot.com/.

Niger state television broadcast Alambo's comments on Monday, translated from the Tuareg Tamasheq language, including a pledge to lay down weapons and join a mediation process led by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

The MNJ accused the government in Niamey of a "treacherous" misinterpretation, saying the message was from Malian rebel leader Ibrahim Ag Bahanga to Gaddafi, who has acted as a mediator in Tuareg-led rebellions in Mali and Niger.

The statement said the rebels would not lay down their weapons until their complaints had been addressed.

The MNJ took up arms last year calling for a greater share of the desert nation's resources, in particular the uranium that is mined in the north, where most of the clashes have taken place, killing 70 government soldiers and 200 rebels.

Niger's government has refused to talk to the rebels, whom it dismisses as bandits and smugglers, until they disarm. Having deployed helicopter gunships, it has gained the upper hand in recent months, killing the deputy rebel commander in June.

A similar rebellion has simmered in Mali's north since the beginning of 2008.

Although analysts say the rebellions, led by Tuareg nomads known for their indigo-coloured turbans, are loosely connected, there are questions over how much Alambo can speak for his Malian counterparts, who are also divided.

The Tuareg are nomadic people who live across the Sahara and took part in previous rebellions in the 1960s and the 1990s.

But the current revolts have taken on greater importance as their poor countries look to extract themselves from poverty through mining their uranium, oil and gold.

Unlike Niger, Mali's government has held negotiations and reached agreements with Tuareg leaders. But the fighting has continued amid splits within the Malian rebellion.

Algeria is currently facilitating talks between the rebels and the Bamako government, which said 26 army soldiers kidnapped by rebels were released on Sunday.

Analysts say the rebellions in Niger and Mali are complicated by factors ranging from genuine complaints over marginalisation and underdevelopment to competing regional interests and lucrative smuggling networks. (For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: http://africa.reuters.com) (Additional reporting by Tiemoko Diallo in Bamako; writing by by David Lewis; editing by Alistair Thomson and Robert Hart)

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