A West African regional bloc is preparing a plan to address the gap that will be left by the withdrawal of United Nations peacekeepers from Mali and the presence of foreign private armies in the region.
(Bloomberg) — A West African regional bloc is preparing a plan to address the gap that will be left by the withdrawal of United Nations peacekeepers from Mali and the presence of foreign private armies in the region.
The Economic Community of West African States will prepare a “comprehensive response mechanism” within three months, according to a statement sent by email, after heads of state from the 15-nation bloc held a summit in Guinea-Bissau at the weekend.
Mali has been beset by instability since the start off a jihadist insurgency in the West African nation in 2012, and two military coups over the past three years. Since the last army takeover in 2021, the junta has ordered the departure of a 13,000-strong UN force and allowed hundreds of personnel from Russia’s Wagner mercenary group to help combat the Islamist militants.
The UN Security Council voted on June 30 to remove the so-called United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali by January.
–With assistance from Katarina Hoije.
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