French troops enter Mali as Hollande announces military intervention - Polidicks

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9eV4CsF66g[/media] [img]http://imgkk.com/i/ndns.jpg[/img] [url]http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/11/us-mali-rebels-idUSBRE90912Q20130111[/url] [quote=Reuters][B]France's armed forces began a military intervention in Mali on Friday to help the government stem a push south by Islamist rebels who control much of the north, President Francois Hollande said.[/B] "French forces brought their support this afternoon to Malian army units to fight against terrorist elements," Hollande told reporters. "This operation will last as long as is necessary." Hollande said United Nations Security Council resolutions meant France was acting in accordance with international laws. Earlier, Hollande had made it clear that France would intervene to stop any further drive southward by Islamist rebels as Malian soldiers launched a counter-offensive to wrest back a town captured by militants this week. Western powers fear the alliance of al Qaeda-linked militants that seized the northern two-thirds of Mali in April will seek to use the vast desert zone as a launchpad for international attacks. Mali's government appealed for urgent military aid from France on Thursday after Islamist fighters encroached further south, seizing the town of Konna in the centre of the country. The rebel advance caused panic among residents in the nearby towns of Mopti and Sevare, home to a military base and airport. "We are faced with blatant aggression that is threatening Mali's very existence. France cannot accept this," Hollande said in a New Year speech to diplomats and journalists. "We will be ready to stop the terrorists' offensive if it continues." The U.N. Security Council in December authorized the deployment of an African-led force supported by European states. "The French believe that France, and Europe, face a real security threat from what is happening in the Sahel," said Jakkie Cilliers, executive director of the Institute for Security Studies in South Africa. More than two decades worth of peaceful elections had earned the Mali a reputation as a bulwark of democracy in a part of Africa better known for turmoil - an image that unraveled in a matter of weeks after a coup last March that paved the way for the Islamist rebellion. Mali is Africa's third largest gold producer and a major cotton grower, and home to the fabled northern desert city of Timbuktu - an ancient trading hub and UNESCO World Heritage site that hosted annual music festivals before the rebellion. REINFORCEMENTS ARRIVE Residents had seen Western soldiers arriving late on Thursday at an airport at Sevare, 60 km (40 miles) south of Konna. Sevare residents also reported the arrival of military helicopters and army reinforcements, which took part in the counter-attack to retake Konna overnight on Thursday in a bid to roll back the militant's southward drive. "Helicopters have bombarded rebel positions. The operation will continue," a senior military source in Bamako said. A source at Sevare airport also said around a dozen war planes had arrived on Friday. A spokesman for the Nigerian air force said planes had been deployed to Mali for a reconnaissance mission, not for combat. A spokesman one of the main groups in the Islamist rebel alliance said they remained in control of Konna. Asked whether the rebels intended to press ahead to capture Sevare and Mopti, the Ansar Dine spokesman, Sanda Ould Boumama, said: "We will make that clear in the coming days." He said any intervention by France would be evidence of an anti-Islam bias. The French foreign ministry stepped up its security alert on Mali and parts of neighboring Mauritania and Niger on Friday, extending its red alert - the highest level - to include Bamako. France has 8 nationals in Islamist hands in the Sahara after a string of kidnappings. "Due to the serious deterioration in the security situation in Mali, the threat of attack or abduction is growing," the ministry said in its travel alert. "It is strongly recommended that people avoid unnecessarily exposing themselves to risks."[/quote] --- Original OP --- [url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20986704[/url] [quote=BBC News][B]France is ready to stop Islamist militants who control northern Mali if they continue their offensive, French President Francois Hollande has said.[/B] However, Mr Hollande said France would only act under UN authorisation. He was responding to a plea by Malian President Dioncounda Traore for help to counter a renewed rebel offensive. Earlier, an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council called for the rapid deployment of an African-led international force to Mali. Armed groups, some linked to al-Qaeda, took control of northern Mali in April 2012. They have enforced an extreme interpretation of Islamic law. Analysts say Western nations are concerned that Mali's north could become a base for terrorists to plan and launch international attacks. [B]'No point rushing in'[/B] The UN has approved plans to send some 3,000 African troops to Mali to recapture the north but they are not due to arrive until September. In the wake of Mr Hollande's speech on Friday, France advised that all "non-essential" French citizens should leave the West African country. "They (rebels) are trying to deliver a fatal blow to the very existence of this country," Mr Hollande said. "France, like its African partners, cannot accept this. I have decided that France will respond, alongside our African partners, to the request from the Malian authorities. "We will do it strictly within the framework of the United Nations Security Council resolution. We will be ready to stop the terrorists' offensive if it continues." Diplomatic sources said Mr Hollande and Mr Traore would meet for talks in Paris next Wednesday. The BBC's Hugh Schofield in Paris says it is not clear what form French intervention might take, but one possibility is the use of air strikes if the rebels advance on the strategic central town of Mopti. Speaking shortly before Mr Hollande's address, French War Veterans Minister Kader Arif appeared to rule out a speedy deployment of French troops to Mali. "There is clearly an emergency but... there's no point in rushing in," said Mr Arif. "At the same time, there can be no kind of engagement that could take place in this emergency without taking account of the international scale." Earlier this week, the militant Islamist group Ansar Dine said it had entered the key central town of Konna and intended to advance further south. The army has refused to comment on the claim. Following its emergency meeting on Mali on Thursday, the UN Security Council called for a "rapid deployment" of the African force and expressed "grave concern" at the capture of Konna by "terrorists and extremist groups". UN diplomats in New York said President Traore had appealed for help to Paris and to UN chief Ban Ki-moon. "It basically said 'Help, France'," the US ambassador to the UN Susan Rice told reporters in describing the letter. France was the colonial power in Mali until 1960.[/quote] AFP [url=http://www.france24.com/en/20130111-mali-attacks-islamists-with-foreign-backing]reports[/url] French jets have already been deployed to back up a Malian Army counter-offensive, while other unspecified European troops are also in the country [quote=AFP]Malian government forces on Friday launched an offensive against Islamists who control the north of the country with backing from the French and other foreign military, military and political sources said. The attack was aimed at stemming advances made by Al-Qaeda-linked radicals who this week triggered international alarm with a push south towards the capital, Bamako, a military officer told AFP. "Our offensive has started," the officer said on condition of anonymity. "The objective is to retake total control of the town of Konna and to proceed from there." [B]He added that "military planes from friendly countries" were being used in the offensive while a Malian government official said the operation had the support of French and European armed forces. "European military, including French, are present in Mali to repel any southward advance by the Islamists," the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.[/B] With the situation on the ground developing rapidly, France advised all its expatriates not involved in essential services to leave Mali immediately. French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian was in contact with US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and was due to talk to his British and German counterparts later in the day. The offensive came a day after Mali's government appealed to France, the former colonial power, and the United Nations for help in pushing back the Islamists. As well as capturing Konna, the rebel forces have moved about 1,200 Islamist fighters to within 20 kilometres (12.5 miles) of Mopti, a strategically important town on the frontier between rebel-held and government-held territories. French President Francois Hollande responded to Mali's appeal on Friday by saying Paris was ready to help, under the auspices of the UN. The UN Security Council has already given its blessing for a 3,000-strong African force to be sent to Mali but it will not be ready to deploy before September at the earliest. That has put pressure on France to act quickly and Hollande acknowledged that the situation had become critical. "They are trying to deliver a fatal blow to the very existence of this country," he said. "France, like its African partners and the whole of the international community, cannot accept this. "I have decided that France will respond without delay and alongside our partners, to the request of the Malian authorities." He added: "We will do it strictly in the framework of UN Security Council resolutions and we are ready to stop the terrorist offensive if it continues." Mali's interim president, Dioncounda Traore, will visit Paris on Wednesday for talks with Hollande. The Islamists' advance has exacerbated fears of Mali becoming an Afghanistan-style haven for terrorists within easy reach of western Europe. France has led calls for an international response but had insisted its involvement would be limited to providing logistical support for the force being prepared, slowly, by the West African regional bloc ECOWAS. On the ground in central Mali, witnesses told AFP that foreign troops and weapons had already begun arriving by transport plane on Thursday, but it was unclear which country they came from. French sources said Paris has only 14 military liaison officials in Mali, apart from secret service agents. Diplomats at the UN in New York said overnight that Traore, had appealed for help to Paris and UN chief Ban Ki-moon in a letter US ambassador Susan Rice summed up as: "Help -- France." Until this week, the Islamists had stayed in Mali's vast arid north, where they took control nine months ago, taking advantage of a power vacuum after a coup in March. Political tensions in the capital, Bamako, and doubts about the capacity of the Malian army have contributed to the delays in the planned African force being deployed.[/quote] BBC's Hugh Schofield, in the first article link, also reports there are already French troops on the ground who may be "assessing the situation" before a larger military strike [quote=BBC's Hugh Schofield]France is signalling pretty unambiguously that it is prepared to step into the Malian conflict. President Hollande said any military action would take place within the framework of the UN, but officials at the Elysee have made clear that, in France's view, existing UN resolutions already provide sufficient legal cover. Media reports in Paris say a detachment of French troops is already on the ground at the airport in Mopti, about 70km (43 miles) south of the frontline. It is not clear what their role is - perhaps to assess the situation ahead of a possible intervention. And what form that intervention might take is not clear either. Off the record, French officials say the "line in the sand" is Mopti. If the rebels and foreign Islamists advance much further towards the town, France could perhaps launch air strikes to stop them. But France faces two difficult questions. Seven French hostages are held in the Sahel region. What would their fate be if France intervened? And, second, what guarantee is there that air strikes would halt the advance? If they don't, what then?[/quote]

Sneaky imperialist Zionist French dog trick to get colonies back in north Africa. I see right through you.

Hurr Western World Police etc. etc.

[QUOTE=Scrimp;39180673]Sneaky imperialist Zionist French dog trick to get colonies back in north Africa. I see right through you.[/QUOTE] Frenica.

the battle for mali now that's a war i can get behind

france has jets?

[QUOTE=explodingape;39181200]france has jets?[/QUOTE] [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dassault_Aviation"]Dassault[/URL]

[QUOTE=explodingape;39181200]france has jets?[/QUOTE] wow yeah they even got cars!!

[QUOTE=Shadow45;39181333]wow yeah they even got cars!![/QUOTE] Clearly those snail-sucking savages are more advanced than we originally thought.

Good to see France are [I]still[/I] being world police while the rest of the world takes a break. Good on them, someone has gotta do it.

Hollande just confirmed that troops are on the ground and the intervention has begun [url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20991719[/url]

This sounds weird but I really want to see if they release field reports on their equipment they're bringing in. To see if certain things aren't making the cut.

Breaking news France surrenders [highlight](User was permabanned for this post ("Meme reply, ban history indicates at least 2 last chances" - Megafan))[/highlight]

Give those fuckers the Baguette.

[QUOTE=smurfy;39181722]Hollande just confirmed that troops are on the ground and the intervention has begun [url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20991719[/url][/QUOTE] What all 5? :v:

He's not a socialist, he's an imperialist!

why is France interested in Mali?

[QUOTE=JerryK;39182152]why is France interested in Mali?[/QUOTE] Former French colony.

Good to see that 75% tax is going to be put into good use.

Good on the french

You know you are in rough shape when the french army is coming to help you.

[B]UPDATE:[/B] The Malian army backed by French air strikes has scored its first victory [img]http://puu.sh/1MxsG[/img] [img]http://puu.sh/1Mxt7[/img]

Wonder what the outcome of this will be.

This is one military action where I can actually see some sense, even the nomads that originally started conquering northern Mali called for help.

[QUOTE=JerryK;39182152]why is France interested in Mali?[/QUOTE] As it's been said above, Mali used to be a french colony, but it's mostly because Mali's President requested military assistance from us and Hollande accepted. I believe the primary reason for this deployment is that the islam shit that's happening in Africa right now is scaring the hell out of a lot of people and they're afraid they could push all the way up to Western Europe.

[QUOTE=explodingape;39181200]france has jets?[/QUOTE] Yeah, they provided a lot of air support in Libya. Was all over the news.

Here we go again!

[QUOTE=explodingape;39181200]france has jets?[/QUOTE] Uh, France is one of the world's most important military powers. They have the third largest stockpile of nuclear weapons and the only nuclear aircraft carrier outside the US Navy.

Rafael Jets, [b]FUCK YEAH[/b] [img]http://yellowairplane.com/Models_Fighters/images/RafaelJetFighterPicture.jpg[/img]

France also has massive problems with "illegals" coming over the med sea, an extremist group gaining power in northern Africa means big trouble for them