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Military intervention in Mali on the table, if negotiations fail – ECOWAS
The ensuing political chaos allowed al-Qaeda-linked Islamist rebels to seize control of the vast desert north, where they have enforced strict sharia law.
The option of a military intervention from a 3,300-strong Economic Community of West African States standby force has been on the table for months but “very little” has been done to implement this, Mali’s Defence Minister Yamoussa Camara admitted recently.
Mali’s army chief of staff Ibrahima Dembele has said the Malian army will play the lead role in ejecting the jihadists.
“No one will fight this war in place of Mali, but the others will provide support, above all in the air and in logistics,” he said on Tuesday.
The UN has asked for more information on the size, means and plans of the proposed force before granting it a mandate.
ECOWAS on Wednesday urged the new government to swiftly organize elections and re-establish “territorial integrity”.
Nigerian President Jonathan however ruled out using force against extremists in his own country, brushing aside criticism he has not done enough to quell violence as Islamist group Boko Haram wages a deadly insurgency across northern Nigeria.
