Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bamako (Agenzia Fides) - " Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra, is engaged in raising the morale of the army to prepare it for a possible intervention in the north. Last weekend he traveled to the Tibou region to meet military forces in the area " says Fr. Edmond Dembele, secretary of the Episcopal Conference of Mali to Fides. The Country is still divided in two, with the north in the hands of armed groups.
"The Arabs of the north have not yet chosen a field where to draw up. This is why they have met in Mauritania to see what position to adopt, whether to draw up with the Islamists or not, "says Fr. Dembele.
We ask our interlocutor if the meeting in Mauritania is also attended by members of the government of Mali. "There is no official news about it, but it is possible that there are also representatives of the authorities in Bamako" he answers.
After the failure of the agreement between the MNLA (National Liberation Movement of Azawad, formed by independent "lay") and the Islamist of Ansar Dine (that wish to extend the Sharia to the entire Country) for the establishment of an Islamic state in the north of Mali, the division between the two movements seems to have deepened. "The gap between the two main movements that control the north of Mali could favour a possible military intervention of the army of Bamako with the support of a pan-African force," said the Secretary of the Episcopal Conference of Mali."
In fact - says Fr. Dembele – It is known that the President of the African Union, the President of Benin, Thomas Yayi Boni, is working to enable a military force to be sent to Mali with UN support. Burkina Faso, Niger and Ivory Coast have already given their agreement in principle to participate in this military force. But many details are still to be defined before a military mission is deployed in the African country. " (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 05/06/2012)
