Magharebia (Washington DC)

Mali Looks to Reclaim Gao, Timbuktu

23 January 2013
Photo: Ministère de la Défense Française
French troops head for Mali

Gao and Timbuktu could be free of Islamist and terrorist control within a month, AFP quoted the head of the Malian army as saying on Tuesday (January 22nd).

Gerneral Ibrahima Dembele's comments followed reports that French planes had destroyed a major base of al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) near Timbuktu.

A mansion once owned by slain Libya dictator Moamer Kadhafi and other sites used by Ansar al-Din and AQIM were also bombed.

International support for the Mali offensive continues to grow. Ivory Coast said it would deploy 500 soldiers for the African force and Togo has boosted its troop allotment.

Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Arab Emirates are providing transport planes or helicopters to help move the African and French troops around Mali.

  • Comment

Copyright © 2013 Magharebia. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 130 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.

Comments Post a comment

InFocus

French Soldiers Cheered in Mali's Timbuktu

picture

Residents of Timbuktu greeted French-led troops with delight as they entered the ancient city following the retreat of Islamists who had controlled the entire north of the country. Read more »