Written by: YAHOO!News
Macron threatens to withdraw French troops from Mali-Written by: YAHOO!News
President Emmanuel Macron has warned that France would withdraw troops from Mali if political instability there leads to greater Islamist radicalisation. It follows a second coup in nine months in the West African nation. Mr Macron warned of the risk of Mali “moving towards” greater Islamist influence. France has 5,100 troops in the Sahel region which has been a front line in the war against Islamist militancy. French troops have been supporting forces in Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad to battle militants in the Sahel region since 2013. Mr Macron told Le Journal du Dimanche newspaper that he had told regional leaders that France would not support countries where there was no democratic legitimacy or transition, and that France had no intention of keeping its troops in Africa forever. For decades France has provided military support to back leaders of its former colonies in Africa, often sending troops or despatching air strikes to counter armed rebels. Coup leader Colonel Assimi Goïta was named transitional president by the constitutional court on Friday, two days after he declared himself the interim leader. He defended the removal of President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane as necessary because they had failed in their duties and were seeking to sabotage the country’s transition. Soldiers arrested and detained the two men after a cabinet reshuffle that Col Goïta said he was not consulted about. He also led the coup last August, which saw the elected President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta forced out of office. Col Goïta has now promised that a new prime minister would be appointed within days, and that elections would still go ahead next year as planned. Meanwhile, regional leaders will on Sunday hold a “consultation” meeting in Ghana, which Col Goïta is expected to attend. How to solve Mali’s coup conundrum Are coups on the rise in Africa? It is difficult to enact reforms quickly – and the vast landlocked country is poor, with large areas underdeveloped. A coup in 2012 led to militant Islamists exploiting the chaos and seizing the north of the country. French troops helped regain territory, but attacks have continued as the insurgents have capitalised on the persistent political instability in the region. This has all led to public confidence waning over the army leaders’ ability to tackle the Islamist insurgency that has spilled into neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger. It comes days after US President Joe Biden called for a ceasefire in conflict-hit Tigray. It’s clear that the U.S. is not well prepared for defending against cybersecurity attacks. It’s time to create comprehensive plans for safety. The new national flagship to replace the Royal Yacht Britannia and give British businesses a new global platform will enter service in four years, Boris Johnson has announced. 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Most of Belarus’s neighbours and many other European nations have banned Belavia flights amid outrage over Sunday’s forced landing of a Ryanair jet en route to Lithuania from Greece and the arrest of a dissident journalist on board. Justin Trudeau says discovery is ‘painful reminder’ of country’s historic treatment of indigenous people A farm laborer was found guilty Friday in the abduction and killing of an Iowa college student who vanished while out for a run in 2018 and will face life behind bars for a crime that shocked the nation. A 12-member jury unanimously found Cristhian Bahena Rivera guilty of first-degree murder in the attack on University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts, who was described as so kind and friendly that investigators could find no one who spoke badly about her. Bahena Rivera, who came to the U.S. illegally from Mexico as a teenager, will be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. 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Source: https://news.yahoo.com/macron-threatens-withdraw-french-troops-090838481.html