Tag: Mali

Malian government resigns as anger mounts over massacre that left 160 people dead

  BAMAKO, Mali (AFP) — Mali’s prime minister resigned along with his entire government on Thursday following criticism over their handling of an upsurge of violence in the center of the country and a massacre last month that left 160 people dead. A statement from President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita’s office said he had accepted Soumeylou Boubeye Maiga’s resignation and that of his government two weeks after mass protests erupted over the rising tide of violence. […]

Malian leader vows security as massacre toll hits 160

OGASSOGOU, Mali (AFP) — Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita vowed Monday to beef up security as he visited a village where more some 160 people were killed by suspected militiamen from a rival ethnic group. “We need security here — this is your mission,” Keita said, giving a public order to military chief General Aboulaye Coulibaly, who was abruptly appointed on Sunday after the massacre. “Justice will be done,” he vowed. The deadly raid took […]

Mali counts votes after poll worker slain

by Clément SABOURIN Agence France Presse BAMAKO, Mali (AFP) — Vote counting was underway across Mali on Monday after a tense presidential runoff in which a poll worker was killed and 100 polling stations were forced to close due to the security threat from Islamist militants. Security had been drastically boosted ahead of the election’s second round between President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and former finance minister Soumaila Cisse. But over 100 stations had to be […]

Mali counts votes after poll worker slain

  by Clément Sabourin Agence France-Presse BAMAKO, Mali (AFP) — Vote counting was under way across Mali on Monday after a tense presidential runoff in which a poll worker was killed and 100 polling stations were forced to close due to the security threat from Islamist militants. Security had been drastically boosted ahead of the election’s second round between President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and former finance minister Soumaila Cisse. But over 100 stations had to be […]

Nearly 250,000 people couldn’t vote ‘for various reasons’: Mali govt

  BAMAKO, Mali (AFP) — The Mali government on Monday published a list of 871 polling stations which were unable to operate during last week’s presidential election due to outbreaks of violence, adding that almost a quarter of a million people had been unable to vote. A total of 245,888 voters — mainly in northern Timbuktu region, central Mopti and Segou in the south — “were unable to vote for various reasons” during the July 21 […]

Candidates in Mali poll to contest ‘irregular’ results

BAMAKO, Mali (AFP) – A majority of the contenders to become Mali’s next president said on Wednesday they will not accept election results “marred by irregularities” ahead of an official verdict expected on Friday. Major opposition figures, such as former finance minister Soumaila Cisse — seen as the president’s biggest threat in the poll, which was held Sunday — and businessman Aliou Diallo, signed the joint declaration. “We will not accept results marred by irregularities,” […]

Canada launches peacekeeping mission in Mali

  GAO, Mali (AFP) — Canadian armed forces officially launched their peacekeeping mission in restive northern Mali Tuesday, marking Ottawa’s return to the blue helmets after more than a decade. The contingent of 250 soldiers and six helicopters is expected to conduct medical evacuations in the north of the country from Wednesday as they take over from German troops. “My team and I are extremely proud to wear the blue beret as UN soldiers from Canada,” […]

More than 10 civilians killed in Mali attack

BEMAKO, Mali (AFP)–At least 10 civilians have been killed in a possible jihadist attack in Mali’s northeast, close to the border with Niger, according to armed Touareg groups and local authorities. More than 100 people, including numerous civilians, have been killed in recent months in the unstable region, where jihadist groups who have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group operate. On Sunday, “armed bandits linked to local criminal groups operating on the Mali-Niger border […]

AU summit overshadowed by ‘security failings’ in Sahel after attacks

by Hademine Ould Sadi © Agence France-Presse NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania (AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron joined African leaders gathered in the Mauritanian capital on the final evening of a summit overshadowed by security issues after jihadist rebels hammered two fragile Sahel states in successive attacks. Macron held separate talks with the leaders of a five-nation African anti-terror unit backed by France to discuss financial and security hurdles the “G5 Sahel” force faces. Five separate attacks […]

32 Fulani civilians killed in Mali attack: local group

BAMAKO, Mali (AFP)–At least 32 civilians were killed and 10 are missing following an attack in central Mali, believed to have been carried out by traditional hunters, local officials said Sunday, as the government said 16 bodies had been found. Armed Dozo hunters, linked to the Dogon ethnic group, were suspected of ambushing the isolated village of Koumaga in the Mopti region on Saturday, killing dozens of Fulani herders, including children. “They surrounded the village, separated the […]

Migrant ‘Spiderman’ who saved child praised by France’s Macron

by Ambre TOSUNOGLU / Clare BYRNE Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — A Malian migrant who scaled a Paris apartment block to save a four-year-old child was hailed Monday as an “example” by President Emmanuel Macron, who welcomed him to the presidential palace and offered him citizenship. Two days after his daring rescue — viewed millions of times online — Mamoudou Gassama, nicknamed “Spiderman” by French media for his astonishing climbing ability, met Macron […]

At least 5 killed in Mali violence

  BAMAKO, Mali (AFP) — Gunmen killed at least five people near Mali’s troubled northeastern border with Niger, several sources said Thursday. A vehicle traveling from Indelimane to a market in Menaka on Wednesday “was attacked by armed men,” a local elected official told AFP on the condition of anonymity. Five civilian passengers were killed by “assassins who then went to a camp to kill other Tuareg civilians,” he added. Other sources reported a higher toll. […]