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Mali: U.N. Security Council approves ECOWAS, AU military intervention
The U.N. Security Council on Friday unanimously approved a plan to back an African-led military force to help the Mali army oust Islamic militants who seized the northern half of the country and are turning it into an al-Qaeda terrorist hub.
The resolution expresses alarm over the infiltration by “al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), affiliated groups and other extremist groups,” and condemns “the abuses of human rights committed in the north of Mali by terrorist and other extremist groups.”
The U.N.’s assistant secretary-general for human rights returned from Mali to tell reporters this week that al-Qaeda-affiliated Islamic militias have imposed a harsh version of Shariah law on the north.
It has been reported that al-Qaeda had abolished taxes in the north and were using extortion, ransom payments and funds from drug transshipping to establish their rule, he said.
Children are being recruited to build bombs and to serve as soldiers, with payments made to their families of US$600 on enlistment and US$400 a month afterward.
More than 1.5 million Malians have had to flee their homes, with some 40,000 displaced people in the regional city of Mopti. Over 100,000 refugees have registered in Mauritania, over 100,000 in Burkina Faso, 40,000 in Niger and 30,000 in Algeria.
The resolution adopted Friday gives Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon 45 days to help Mali, the West Africans and the African Union (AU) develop plans to recover the occupied territory. It invokes Chapter Seven of the U.N. Charter, which opens the door to military intervention and enforcement of the council’s decisions. It also calls for help from the African Union to help train and assist the Malian army to retake the north.
