Tunisian Revolution and the Middle East

[visionary]

http://www.libyaherald.com/2012/12/1...ht-of-attacks/

Benghazi rocked by second night of attacks

Two more police stations were attacked in Benghazi in the early hours of Monday morning, marking the second consecutive night of severe unrest in the eastern city.

Shortly after midnight, Garyounis police station was hit by explosives, resulting in damage to two civilian cars, but no reported casualties.

Al-Oruba police station was then subsequently hit, with both explosions and exchanges of gunfire being witnessed, although as with Garyounis, no casualties have yet been reported.

A potential third attack on Al-Hadaeq police station was prevented whe the security services managed to apprehend the likely perpetrator in possession of two RPGs.

[visionary]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe...346526845.html

Iraq mass protests mount pressure on Maliki

Tens of thousands of Iraqis have taken part in protests along a major western highway and in other parts of the country in fresh rallies against the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

Massive demonstrations took place along a major highway near the city of Fallujah on Friday, declaring the day a "Friday of Honour".

The rallies appear to be the largest yet in a week of demonstrations, intensifying pressure on the Shia-led government.

In the northern city of Mosul, around 3,000 demonstrators took to the streets to denounce what they called the sidelining of Sunnis in Iraq and to demand the release of Sunni prisoners.

As in protests earlier in the week, demonstrators there chanted the Arab Spring slogan: "The people want the downfall of the regime."

Thousands also took to the streets in the northern Sunni towns of Tikrit and Samarra, where they were joined by legislators and provincial officials, said Salahuddin provincial spokesman Mohammed al-Asi.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2...357402782.html

Iran starts war games in Strait of Hormuz

Iran has started six days of naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz aimed at showcasing its military capabilities in what is a vital oil and gas shipping route, the official IRNA news agency reported.

The manoeuvres began early on Friday, involving warships, submarines jet fighters and hovercrafts.

Naval commander Habibollah Sayyari said on Friday the "Velayat 91" drills would last until Wednesday across an area of about one million square km in the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf of Oman and northern parts of the Indian Ocean, IRNA said.

Sayyari said the goal of the manoeuvres were to show "the armed forces' military capabilities" in defending Iran's borders.

Iran's state TV reported that Tehran had warned ships to stay away from the site until January 3.

https://twitter.com/specialreports

Reuters found no evidence that pressure from oil sanctions have convinced Iran to stop enriching uranium

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90409C20130105

Libyan policeman shot dead in latest Benghazi attack

A police officer was found shot dead on his Benghazi farm on Saturday, the latest in a series of attacks targeting police in the eastern Libyan city, a security official said.

The official said that Lt. Col. Nasser al-Maghrabi's body showed evidence of having been beaten before he was shot.

"Maghrabi's family found his body lying among the olive trees on his farm. He had two shots in his legs and one in his chest," said the official, who declined to be named.

Benghazi is the cradle of the uprising that ended the rule of longtime Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and is now a hot spot for violence, riven with armed factions. Police and military personnel have been the frequent targets of attacks.

Earlier this week, the head of Benghazi's criminal investigations unit was abducted by an armed militia. He has been missing since.

In November, Faraj al-Deirsy, head of Benghazi police, was shot dead in front of his house.

Numerous police stations and checkpoints in the city, Libya's second biggest, have been targets of home-made bomb attacks.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90409320130105

Egypt to replace finance and interior ministers: agency

Egypt's finance and interior ministers are to be replaced in a partial cabinet reshuffle that was promised by President Mohamed Mursi last month in an attempt to assuage public anger at an economic crisis, the state news agency MENA reported on Saturday.

"Middle East News Agency has learned that the new ministers will include General Mohamed Ibrahim for the Interior Ministry and ... Al-Mursi Al-Sayed Hegazy for the Finance Ministry," MENA said.

It said a total of 10 new ministers would take the oath of office on Sunday.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp...d93b6978cd.481

Iraq president responding well to treatment: statement

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani is responding well to treatment in Germany after suffering a stroke and has moved on to rehabilitation, his office said in a statement on Saturday.

Talabani, 79, travelled to Berlin last month after what state television reported was a stroke, the latest in a series of health problems he has suffered in recent years.

"The medical team that treated President Jalal Talabani confirmed that his excellency's health is good, and his response to the treatment has been excellent," a statement on the Iraqi presidency's website said.

"He has passed the difficult stages faster than expected, and that has allowed for ... moving to several rehabilitation procedures."

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa...427828694.html

Central African rebels seize one more town

Rebels in the Central African Republic have taken the southern town of Alindao around 100km from the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, a government spokesman has confirmed.

The military advance on Saturday came after the UN Security Council called on rebels to halt their offensive and withdraw from other towns and cities they had seized earlier.

"There's certainly a big rebel presence in the [Alindao] area and no resistance from government forces," said Al Jazeera's Andrew Simmons, reporting from the capital, Bangui.

"[Government troops] have probably moved out of the area altogether, even as more and more [foreign] troops reinforce the government army."

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa...834449236.html

Rival Sudan leaders meet in Addis Ababa

The rival presidents of Sudan and South Sudan have met for face-to-face talks to push forward stalled security, oil and border deals, and to discuss the fate of the contested Abyei region.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir and his Southern counterpart Salva Kiir met on Saturday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, alongside African Union mediator Thabo Mbeki.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, who is hosting the talks, also attended the first meeting between the former civil war foes for over three months, when they signed a raft of key deals that have yet to be implemented.

Diplomats said talks could continue on Sunday if an agreement is not reached.

On Friday, South Sudan's chief mediator Pagan Amum accused Sudan of dropping bombs across the border four times this week.

"It is very, definitely, negative. These [air raids] are having a negative impact on the summit and discussion," Amum told reporters in Addis Ababa.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middle...730389728.html

Fatah holds first mass rally in Gaza in years

Hamas, which governs Gaza, has allowed the West Bank political party, Fatah, to celebrate its 48th anniversary by staging a rally in Gaza City for the first time since its forces were ousted following a brutal civil war.

Supporters carrying the distinctive black and yellow flags of late Palestinian president Yasser Arafat's group arrived on Friday in a steady stream to the venue.

Many Palestinians living outside of Gaza City arrived overnight, lighting fires and starting the celebrations early. Cars cruised the streets with waving Fatah and Palestinian flags.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas last month allowed Hamas supporters to celebrate their movement's founding in a rare rally in the West Bank.

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20935871

Libya's liberal NFA group boycotts national assembly

Liberal National Forces Alliance (NFA) MP Souad Sultan told the BBC the assembly was failing to meeting the nation's aspirations.

The assembly was elected in July, nine months after long-serving ruler Muammar Gaddafi was killed.

But its MPs are deadlocked over how a constitution should be drafted.

The BBC's Rana Jawad in the capital, Tripoli, says the NFA wants voters to elect a 60-member committee to draft the document.

However, other groups want the 200-member assembly to choose the committee.

The NFA, which is the largest bloc in the assembly, also cited chaotic proceedings and a lack of security at the assembly for withdrawing its MPs.

https://twitter.com/Libyan4life

NFA withdrawing from the GNC effectively undermines establishing Democracy in Libya
3:25 PM

NFA MP Souad Sultan told the BBC GNC was failing to meeting the nation's aspirations. HA! So abandoning it will actualize it?
3:33 PM

I bet some NFA members are just relieved now they've made it official that they wont come to GNC sessions... makes it less awkward.
3:42 PM

NFA thing is frustrating but Im still looking big picture and Im optimistic for Libya. We've got great things ahead inshaAllah.
4:04 PM

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...9CBEJB20130111

Pentagon weighs Mali options, including intel sharing

The Pentagon is weighing options in Mali following French air strikes on Friday against Islamist rebels, including intelligence-sharing with France and logistics support, a U.S. official told Reuters.

"Discussions are ongoing," the official said on condition of anonymity.

Western governments, particularly former colonial power France, voiced alarm after the al Qaeda-linked rebel alliance captured the central Malian town of Konna on Thursday, a gateway towards the capital of Bamako 375 miles (600 km) farther south.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90912Q20130111

Malian army beats back Islamist rebels with French help

Malian government troops drove back Islamist rebels from a strategic central town after France intervened on Friday with air strikes to halt advances by the militants controlling the country's desert north.

Western governments, particularly former colonial power France, had voiced alarm after the al Qaeda-linked rebel alliance captured the town of Konna on Thursday, a gateway towards the capital Bamako 600 km (375 miles) south.

President Francois Hollande said France would not stand by to watch the rebels push southward. Paris has repeatedly warned that the Islamists' seizure of the country's north in April gave them a base to attack neighboring African countries and Europe.

"We are faced with blatant aggression that is threatening Mali's very existence. France cannot accept this," Hollande, who recently pledged Paris would not to meddle in African affairs, said in a New Year speech to diplomats and journalists.

[visionary]

https://twitter.com/columlynch

France's UN envoy to UNSecCoun: French military operation will last as long as necessary-- "durera le temps necessaire."
10:11 PM

Earlier tweet said France wd invoke art 51 of UN charter. It didn't. In letter to UNSC, Fr says it is acting "w/in bounds of int legality."
10:17 PM

http://turtlebay.foreignpolicy.com/p..._is_open_ended

France’s U.N. envoy: French military intervention in Mali is open ended

France's U.N. envoy Gerard Araud defended his government's decision today to intervene in Mali, telling the U.N. Security Council in a letter that the operation was being carried out "within the bounds of international legality" and that it would last "as long as is necessary" to turn back an Islamist insurgency.

The French military action came one day after a loose coalition of Islamist insurgents who control northern Mali marched south, capturing the town of Konno and threatening to move against the regional capital of Mopti. In response, Mali's president M. Dioncounda Traore, appealed to President Francois Hollande for military assistance.

In a confidential letter Thursday to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki moon, Traore described his request to the French leader, sating that a "coalition of terrorist groups" has "attacked our front lines of defense," posing a threat to international peace and security. He informed Ban that he had requested "French military assistance against these terrorist groups."

Traore assured Ban that Mali's transitional government would continue to meet its commitments to the U.N. Security Council to engage in political talks with non-extremists opposition figures in northern Mali and pave the way for a return to democratic rule. He also said he would try to step up plans to deploy an African-led force in Mali.

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90B06W20130112

West Africa's ECOWAS to send troops to retake northern Mali

West African regional bloc ECOWAS will begin sending soldiers to Mali by Monday as part of a mission to drive al Qaeda-linked fighters from the country's north, an Ivory Coast government official said on Saturday.

"Monday by the latest the troops will be there or will have started to arrive ... We need to retake the northern part (of Mali) occupied by the jihadists," said Ali Coulibaly, Ivory Coast's African Integration Minister.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90B06H20130112

Somali rebels say France attacks to rescue secret agent

French military helicopters attacked a base belonging to al Shabaab insurgents in southern Somalia to rescue a French secret agent held hostage since 2009, a rebel spokesman said on Saturday.

French officials were not immediately available to comment on reports of the raid, in which a Somali government official said at least two people were killed.

https://twitter.com/Reuters

French defense ministry says French hostage, two French soldiers killed during Somalia raid
4:38 AM

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90B0E620130112

France to pursue Mali operations, up domestic security: Hollande

France will pursue operations in Mali to prepare a subsequent African-led intervention to oust Islamist rebels and will step up anti-terrorist security measures on its own territory, President Francois Hollande said on Saturday.

"We have already held back the progress of our adversaries and inflicted heavy losses on them. But our mission is not over yet," Hollande told a news conference a day after France launched air strikes to pre-empt a feared rebel advance towards the capital Bamako.

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90B0EC20130112

Serbian PM says time to face facts over Kosovo sovereignty

Prime Minister Ivica Dacic told Serbia on Saturday it had "practically" lost sovereignty over Kosovo, and said autonomy for ethnic Serbs living there was the most it could hope to salvage.

In some of the boldest remarks by a Serbian leader on Kosovo since NATO bombs wrested the former province from Belgrade's control in 1999, Dacic said Serbia could not afford to "keep its head in the sand".

"Serbian sovereignty over Kosovo is practically non-existent," he told parliament as lawmakers debated a resolution calling for autonomy for tens of thousands of ethnic Serbs still living in mainly Albanian Kosovo.

http://english.alarabiya.net/article...12/259977.html

Tunisia’s Ennahda chief warns revolution turning into ‘chaos’

Tunisia’s Ennahda leader Rached Ghannouchi on Friday warned from turning the Tunisian revolution into “chaos” at a time where recent events in the country had been associated with violence.

Speaking three days before Tunisia marks its uprising’s second anniversary since the overthrow of ex-president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, Ghannouchi told hundreds of the party’s supports that many countries have been able to topple its regimes and tyrants, but not build a democratic state when freedom is misused.

“We do not want Tunisia to become like Somalia, where revolution turned into chaos,” he told supporters gathering in the Rowad neighborhood northern the Tunisian capital.

His announcement comes as Tunisians prepare to inaugurate the Tunisian uprising, amid a highly uncertain future beset by social and security tensions, a sluggish economy, and deadlock over a new constitution.

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90912Q20130112

Over 100 dead in French strikes and fighting in Mali

More than 100 people including rebels and government soldiers were killed in Mali during French air strikes and fighting over the strategic town of Konna, Malian military sources and witnesses said on Saturday.

An army officer at the headquarters of Mali's former military junta in Bamako said nearly 30 vehicles carrying Islamist fighters had been bombed and "over 100" rebels had been killed in fighting.

"We have driven them out, we are effectively in Konna," Malian Defense Ministry spokesman Lt. Col. Diaran Kone told Reuters. "We don't know if they have planted mines or other traps, so we are moving with caution. There were many deaths on both sides."

A shopkeeper in Konna said he had counted 148 bodies in four different locations in the town. Among the dead were several dozen uniformed government soldiers. Others wore traditional robes and turbans.

[visionary]

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa...=MasterAccount

French fighter jets destroy Mali rebel camp

France's air force have launched fresh strikes in northern Mali, targeting a camp used by jihadist fighters and a weapons depot for the Islamist rebel group Ansar Dine, officials and residents have said.

Witnesses said on Sunday that French fighter jets struck a camp used by rebels in Lere, around 150km north of Konna, a key central town that government troops recaptured with French aerial backing on Friday.

"The Lere camp, which was abandoned by the Malian army and had been used by the Islamists, was completely razed by air raids," a local official said, speaking from Mauritania where he took refuge.

Al Jazeera's correspondent Mohammed Adow, reporting from the capital Bamako, said authorities claimed to have halted the rebel advance but there had been civilian casualties.

"The mayor of Kono said that at least of three of the dead were children who had jumped into a river, as they tried to escape the massive bombardment in the area," Adow said.

The first days of the battle against extremists holding Mali's north have left at least 11 civilians dead, including the three children.

French air raids also struck weapons and ammunition depots used by Ansar Dine, a name that translates as Defenders of Faith, a group whose leaders are connected to Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...medium=twitter

France Says U.S. Is Ready to Back Up Mali Mission

Oh, France.

[visionary]

https://twitter.com/Number10gov

UK will help to transport foreign troops & equipment to Mali but no British combat troops will be deployed http://www.number10.gov.uk/news/stat...dent-hollande/
5:38 PM

https://twitter.com/BreakingNews

France's foreign minister says US is providing communications and transport help for international military intervention in Mali - @AP
1:21 PM

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp...80af493a87.271

Algeria authorises France to use airspace for Mali raids

Algeria has authorised French warplanes to use its airspace for bombing raids on neighbouring Mali, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Sunday.

Fabius, who was speaking after French Rafale fighter jets bombed Islamist bases near Gao in northern Mali from their base in France, said Algeria's cooperation was indicative of the extent of international support for the intervention in Mali.

"Algeria has authorised the overflight of its territory, for which I thank them," Fabius said, adding that France was hopeful Algeria would provide further help to the campaign by denying Islamist radicals an escape route from the north of Mali.

"We are working with the Algerians and our discussions are ongoing. What we have in mind is that if African troops move into the north of the country the Algerians will have to close their border."

Algeria had been the most reticent of Mali's neighbours about the prospect of foreign troops being sent in to reclaim control of the north of the country, which the Islamists have occupied for some nine months.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/01/13/wo..._campaign=cnni

France determined to 'eradicate' terrorism in Mali, official says

As a new round of French military raids targeted Islamist rebels in Mali on Sunday, both sides of the battle said they were determined to win.

French fighter jets bombed rebel training camps and other targets in northern Mali on Sunday, the French Defense Ministry said in a statement.

"France's goal is to lead a relentless struggle against terrorist groups," the ministry said, "preventing any new offensive of these groups to the south of Mali."

Sunday's raids were the latest in a French operation to help the Malian government stop advances by militant Islamist forces. France has sent several hundred troops to join the fight and plans more raids on Monday, French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told Radio Europe 1.

"We have to eradicate this terrorism," he said Sunday.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90C0F520130113

Analysis: French early strike shakes up Mali intervention plan

France has rushed to help Mali block a push south by Islamist rebels from its desert north but a U.N.-backed intervention plan to dislodge al Qaeda and its allies faces a tough enemy and terrain and could still take months - if it succeeds at all.

The original timetable for the AFISMA intervention force of 3,300 West African troops with western logistical, financial and intelligence backing did not foresee deployment before September, to allow time for full preparation.

But this has now been accelerated by the rushed French response to a plea for help by Mali's government, after mobile columns of Islamist fighters last week threatened the central garrison towns of Mopti and Sevare, with its key airport.

With French jets and helicopters hitting Islamist positions in Gao and other rebel-held towns, West African regional grouping ECOWAS is now scrambling to get its troops onto the ground in Mali, raising questions about the long-term mission.

"Rushing into the intervention right now provides a shaky ground for the mission," said Martin van Vliet, a researcher at the African Studies Center at Leiden in the Netherlands.

[visionary]

http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_289563/con...tguid=lgeHUMM0

Mali Islamists gain ground despite French fighting

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) - Despite intensive aerial bombardments by French warplanes, Islamist insurgents grabbed more territory in Mali on Monday, including a strategic military camp, bringing them much closer to the capital, French and Malian military officials said.

Early Monday, the al-Qaida-linked extremists cut off the road leading to the garrison town of Diabaly. By afternoon they succeeded in overrunning the town and overtaking the military base, located around 160 kilometers (100 miles) north of Segou, the administrative capital of central Mali, France's Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Monday. The French Embassy in Bamako immediately ordered the evacuation of the roughly 60 French nationals in the region of Segou, said a French citizen who insisted on anonymity out of fear for her safety.

The French military, which began battling the extremists in northern Mali on Friday, expanded its aerial bombing campaign, launching airstrikes for the first time in central Mali to combat the new threat. But the intense assault including raids by gunship helicopters and Mirage fighter jets, failed to halt the advance of the rebels, who now are only 400 kilometers (250 miles) from the capital Bamako, in the far south. Before France sent in its forces on Friday, the closest known spot the Islamists were to the capital was 680 kilometers (420 miles) away, in the town of Konna.

France's defense minister said Monday the rebels "took Diabaly after fierce fighting and resistance from the Malian army, that couldn't hold them back."

The Malian military is in disarray and has let many towns fall with barely a shot fired since the insurgency began almost a year ago in the West African nation. The Islamist fighters control the north and had been blocked in Mali's narrow waist in the central part of the landlocked nation. They appear to have now done a flanking move, opening a second front in the broad southern section of the country, knifing in from the west on government forces.

http://staff.blogs.aljazeera.com/top...were-occupying

Islamist rebels in northern Mali have abandoned key towns they were occupying

Islamist rebels in northern Mali have abandoned key towns they were occupying, including the ancient city of Timbuktu, under pressure from French airstrikes, residents said Monday.

[visionary]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationwo...,4876209.story

U.S. moves to bolster French military campaign in Mali

The Obama administration is preparing to ferry hundreds of additional French troops to the North African country of Mali, bolstering a rapidly evolving military campaign in the latest conflict with Al Qaeda affiliates.

U.S. officials said they also were making plans to send drones or other surveillance aircraft and provide help with aerial refueling of French fighter jets, which bombed columns of Al Qaeda-allied militants in northern Mali for a fourth straight day Monday.

The Pentagon's moves reflect growing concern in Washington about rebel advances, and a decision by the Obama administration to back France's operation after months of inaction. French officials said they had halted the rebels' advance on Bamako, the capital, but insurgents later overran Malian forces in a town about 200 miles northeast of the capital.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa...=MasterAccount

France had 'no choice' over Mali intervention

The French ambassador to the United Nations has said that his country launched a military intervention in Mali because it believed that the existence of the country was at stake.

Gerard Araud told a closed-door meeting of the UN Security Council on Monday that France was responding to calls for help from the government of the former French colony.

Hours earlier, rebel fighters in Mali responded to French airstrikes and military action with a counter-offensive, overrunning the town of Diabaly, French and Malian authorities confirmed.

Araud said France had "no other choice" but to help the Malian government.

"We will defend [the capital] Bamako. We will not let the southern part of the country, with its 13 million inhabitants, fall to terrorist groups," said Araud.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opi...=MasterAccount

Don't make the same anti-terrorism mistakes in Mali

While it is abundantly clear that certain Islamist groups are calling the shots in the North, conversations with Malians in the south of the country suggest that many continue to make little or no distinction between three distinct assemblages in the North: Tuareg civilians who are just trying to live their lives; Tuareg rebels (largely represented by the MNLA) who initiated the rebellion to create an autonomous state; and Islamists who support sharia law and often have connections to groups outside the country. Many Malians blame the MNLA for initiating the rebellion and problematically conflate them with innocent Tuareg civilians and Islamist groups.

This failure to consistently distinguish between different groups in the North by multiple stakeholders (including the interim Malian government and its army backers, a significant proportion of the population in the south, and many international observers) portends longer term trouble for the significant military drive to push back the rebels begun by France this past weekend. Because of this unwillingness to differentiate, military initiatives - which must necessarily involve the Malian military in ground operations - stand a good probability of inflicting high levels of collateral damage, particularly on innocent Tuareg civilians who are likely to be unfairly associated with the Islamist rebels.

This potential collateral damage should be of deep concern for at least three reasons. First and foremost, the Malian government, the French military and the international community have an obligation to avoid clumping together the innocent with the guilty in order to avert the loss of life and human rights abuses amongst blameless civilians. Second, if there was no significant support amongst Tuaregs for an independent state known as Azawad before, collateral damage amongst innocent civilians will tend to foster this. Third, anti-terrorism efforts in other parts of the world involving an outside military component have only ever succeeded on the narrow grounds of disabling military capacity and have largely failed when it comes to building peaceful regions under democratic governance.

[visionary]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-21023219

Mali conflict: France to increase troop numbers

Mr Hollande, visiting the United Arab Emirates, said new air strikes overnight had "achieved their goal".

West African military chiefs will meet in Mali on Tuesday to discuss how an alliance with the French will work.

France began its intervention on Friday with the aim of halting the Islamists' advance south towards the capital.

Late on Monday, the UN Security Council unanimously backed the intervention.

Mr Hollande, on a visit to the French regional military base known as Peace Camp in Abu Dhabi, said: "For now, we have 750 men and the number will increase. New strikes overnight achieved their goal."

He said that assembling an African military force to work with the French troops could take a "good week".

The French contingent is expected to rise to 2,500 in the coming weeks.

Some 30 French tanks and armoured troop transport vehicles crossed into Mali from Ivory Coast on Monday, with a helicopter escort, witnesses said.

[visionary]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90F0EL20130116

Analysis - France digs in for long, uncertain stay in Mali

In five days, France's mercy dash to Mali to stop al Qaeda-linked Islamists seizing the capital has bounced it into a promise to keep troops there until its West African former colony is finally back on its feet.

Exactly how long that will take is hard to say. But Africa's latest war is likely to entail a long stay for France with an exit strategy that will depend largely on allies who have yet to prove they are ready for the fight.

"We should get used to the idea we are embarking on a major mission alongside Malian and African forces for the duration," Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said late on Tuesday.

France threw crack troops and state-of-the-art hardware including Rafale and Mirage jets into Mali, quickly blocking the rebels' advance south and destroying many of their operating bases, fuel and munitions stocks with air strikes in the north.

Paris can rely on intelligence from its Harfang surveillance drones and 800 soldiers have been redeployed, some from missions in Chad and Ivory Coast. Others, including units hardened by battle in Afghanistan, will bring the total up to 2,500.

But France is adamant it wants to transfer leadership of the operation to troops promised by nations of the West African ECOWAS regional grouping and to Malian forces which the European Union has promised to train up to battleground standards.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...90F0GK20130116

French, Malian troops encircle Islamist rebels in central Mali

French ground troops deployed around the central Malian town of Niono on Wednesday in a bid to halt any further advance by Islamist rebels who have seized the nearby village of Diabaly, Malian military sources said.

"French forces have secured Niono to stop the Islamists advancing to Segou while the Malian army is securing the border area with Mauritania," said one source. "They are now encircled and a final assault is only a matter of time."

In a sixth day of air assaults, French fighter jets also struck the headquarters of the Islamic police in Niafunke, near the ancient caravan town of Timbuktu, local residents said.