Mali coup leader agrees to extension of transitonal president's mandate.
Captain Amadou Sanogo has agreed to drop his objections to an extention of the original 40 day mandate following ECOWAS's threat to reimpose sanctions.
Source : https://www.marocafrik.com/english/Mali-coup-leade...
ECOWAS said that they were expecting transitional president Dioncounda Traore to make a formal request for
ECOWAS troops to come to Bamako.
Ecowas could in the future open negotiations with Tuareg rebles in the North of Mali, however the priority is to stabalise the political process in the South of Mali which saw an unsuccessful counter coup by troops loyal to the previous President , Amadou Touamani Touré who was deposed in the coup lead by Captain Sanogo recently.
The number of Tuareg rebels is thought to have increased to over 6,000 well armed men and they are split between between the MNLA who called for independence and the fundamentalist goup Ansar Dine who want a sharia state but not independence and elements of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. Negotiating with these different groups will be difficult.
Whilst the dispute with Captain Sanogo and Ecowas over the interim president's mandate has lost valuable time ECOWAS has held firm and has been able to compel the Junta to agree to the extension of mandate. Ecowas is clearly in charge of the situation and is backed by the UN and USA and other powers.
However dealing with the North of Mali will be a very difficult proposition and more Al Qaeda operatives are joining the forces in Timbuktu,Kidal and Gao according to agency reports. Some 200,000 Malian citizens have been displaced by the fighing in the north.
ECOWAS troops to come to Bamako.
Ecowas could in the future open negotiations with Tuareg rebles in the North of Mali, however the priority is to stabalise the political process in the South of Mali which saw an unsuccessful counter coup by troops loyal to the previous President , Amadou Touamani Touré who was deposed in the coup lead by Captain Sanogo recently.
The number of Tuareg rebels is thought to have increased to over 6,000 well armed men and they are split between between the MNLA who called for independence and the fundamentalist goup Ansar Dine who want a sharia state but not independence and elements of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. Negotiating with these different groups will be difficult.
Whilst the dispute with Captain Sanogo and Ecowas over the interim president's mandate has lost valuable time ECOWAS has held firm and has been able to compel the Junta to agree to the extension of mandate. Ecowas is clearly in charge of the situation and is backed by the UN and USA and other powers.
However dealing with the North of Mali will be a very difficult proposition and more Al Qaeda operatives are joining the forces in Timbuktu,Kidal and Gao according to agency reports. Some 200,000 Malian citizens have been displaced by the fighing in the north.
Source : https://www.marocafrik.com/english/Mali-coup-leade...