Mali mainly, 2012 coup, drugs & more

[Fuchs]

http://www.cdef.terre.defense.gouv.f...eration-serval

[davidbfpo]

Fuchs,

A good catch the official French post-action report, which does have an English summary.

I'd missed that what appear to be lorry-borne heavy artillery was deployed and the logistic aspect is covered.

[Fuchs]

Fuchs,

A good catch the official French post-action report, which does have an English summary.

I'd missed that what appear to be lorry-borne heavy artillery was deployed and the logistic aspect is covered.

I get their newsletter, automated my 'catching' here.

Language barriers are troublesome, so I make a conscious effort to penetrate them.

[Piranha]

I get their newsletter, automated my 'catching' here.

Language barriers are troublesome, so I make a conscious effort to penetrate them.

Could you provide us with a link for that?
I could be of help with the language.

Happy Easter to all, in whichever way you celebrate it.

[davidbfpo]

A short NYT article, which appears to be based on unofficial statements from French & US officials and not that we have not heard this language before:

So the group that terrorized half a country, northern Mali, in the heart of West Africa for much of 2012, taking over its major towns, and threatening other nations in the region, has been reduced to a pale remnant of its former self. It is no longer the pre-eminent threat to the fragile states in West Africa’s Sahel region — the band of desert and semi-desert running just below the Sahara.

Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/30/wo...=tw-share&_r=1

[davidbfpo]

Via NYT:

Separatist Tuareg rebels launched an assault on the city of Kidal in northern Mali over the weekend, killing eight soldiers, storming government buildings and taking 30 hostages in a “declaration of war” on the government, officials said Sunday.The attack was apparently prompted by a visit to Kidal on Saturday by the newly appointed prime minister, Moussa Mara, highlighting regional hostility toward the central government in Bamako and casting further doubt on the viability of reconciliation efforts in the wake of the turmoil experienced by the country since 2012.

Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/19/wo...hostages.html?

Noteworthy as IMHO the seperatist Tuareg have been quiet since the French-supported intervention. Almost a return to "normal" in Mali.

[davidbfpo]

An odd headline IMHO:

France ends Mali offensive, redeploys troops to restive Sahel

Followed within by (slightly edited):

The new "counter-terrorism" operation, codenamed Barkhan, will kick off in the coming days and is being implemented in partnership with five countries -- Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad -- Le Drian said.

He added that some 3,000 French soldiers would be part of the operation, 1,000 of whom would stay in northern Mali and the rest would be deployed in the other countries....which will have its headquarters in the Chadian capital N'Djamena

Link:http://news.yahoo.com/france-ends-ma...83027863.html?