West African nations yesterday agreed to send some 3,000 troops to help the country of Mali wrest back control of its northern half, which was seized by al-Qaeda-linked fighters more than six months ago, according to an official and a report on Nigerian state television. The decision came at the end of an emergency summit in Nigeria's capital of the Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS. They were joined by military experts from the United Nations, Europe, and ministers from Algeria. The plan needs final approval from the UN Security Council before it can be carried out.
An official involved in the negotiations said that the nations in West Africa are now unanimous in their decision to go forward with the military operation. He said that they will attempt one more round of negotiations with representatives of the Islamists controlling northern Mali, before moving ahead with the intervention. "We have agreed that 3,300 troops will be sent from West Africa. In addition, around 5,000 Malian troops will also be involved. If there is no agreement in the talks, we will move in." Both France and the US have said that the will provide technical and logistical support to the intervention, provided that it is first approved by the United Nations. (More Mali stories.)
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