Saturday, March 31, 2012

Civilian Source - Mali Army Abandons Northern Town After Rebel Attack Reuters

By Cheick Dioura along with Tiemoko Diallo

GAO/BAMAKO Sat Mar 31, 2012 9:26pm EDT

GAO/BAMAKO (Reuters) - Mali's army abandoned its government bases about the major northern garrison city associated with Gao about Saturday after a fierce harm by greatly see thousands rebels, military plus civilian methods said.

It has been today's feeting defeat for your affiliate marketing online once a new turbo 48-hour enhance by upper rebels trying to utilize with disorder in the particular West African nation soon after last week's coup.

"Given that proximity in the camps to non commercial areas, our energies made the decision never to fight," a statement through junta chief Captain Amadou Sanogo examine out there on state tv set said.

One civilian reference mentioned rebels previously occupied both main angles around the city although yet another source explained just one of the 2 main camps had been currently within rebel control. A Reuters news reporter in Gao explained there seems to be no preventing inside the community itself.

"The army possesses struck that street for you to Bamako," explained your civilian cause the road into the money several 1,000 km (600 miles) further south. A local authorities form claimed many affiliate marketer vehicles internet out of the camps within the exact road.

Gao, some sort of town connected with some 90,000, can also be appearing defended simply by well-armed community militia. However some sort of armed service reference said your internet marketer experienced informed all of them that will cover his or her weapons as well as to not ever offered a fight when your rebels entered.

The assault on Gao came on a daily basis following on from the rebels - a reduce alliance connected with separatist nomad Tuaregs along with regional Islamists - seized Kidal, among the some major cities connected with north Mali, down by using Gao plus the historical stock trading city with Timbuktu.

Junta leaders, whose friends have granted all of them till Monday in order to side to come back electrical power to civilians or even face sanctions which includes your crippling drawing a line under with Mali's edges to help trade, pledged to produce proposals "very quickly" for you to bring back constitutional order.

"We never need to confiscate power," Colonel Moussa Sinko Coulibaly told reporters with Ouagadougou, the funds involving Burkina Faso, once speaks with Burkina President Blaise Compaore, named simply by West African grouping ECOWAS as most important mediator from the crisis.

"We will try and refine plans to help easily reach an institutional option appropriate to be able to ECOWAS, the particular foreign group and also certainly our national community," stated Coulibaly, the scalp connected with case for junta leader Amadou Sanogo.

Burkina Foreign Minister Djibril Bassolet explained to Reuters your dog was skiing for you to Bamako on Saturday night time for discussions.

BACKFIRED COUP

Earlier on Saturday, a Reuters reporter observed the rebels enter in Gao early in addition to hoist the banner of Azawad, the actual wasteland territory even larger as compared to France construct y prefer to create their particular homeland, just before draging backside right after getting together with resistance.

Some rebels shouted "God can be Greatest" with Arabic, meaning care to Islamist sets that are definitely not separatist but want to enforce sharia, Islamic law, within the largely Muslim country.

The unrest in Mali, Africa's lastly largest gold producer, continues to be fuelled by weapons brought out of Libya during last year's conflict, along with dangers building a substantial brand new lawless zoom inside Saharan wilderness that will Islamists along with bad guys could exploit.

Mid-ranking officials powering continue week's coup have falsely accused your federal government associated with supplying these limited resources to struggle the particular rebels. But the actual coup backfired spectacularly, emboldening the particular rebels to be able to require further ground.

Malian President Amadou Toumani Toure, whose 10 years in strength was regarding solidity although likewise rising annoyance having a political top dogs charged of condoning popular corruption, offers said he's safe during an undisclosed location around Mali.

Coup head Sanogo, who may have picked up significant lane support, pleaded on Friday to get outdoors easily maintain your territorial unity in the cotton- plus gold-producing ex - French colony.

Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara, the actual scalp with ECOWAS, informed condition television system that a recently proclaimed local stand-by drive connected with 2,000 may possibly intervene against the rebels when civilians have been returning around power.

"The West African internet marketer should arrive at the actual saving of the Malian people today . Of course, that may be associated with a new returning connected with constitutional order," he / she noted.

(This version from the adventure continues to be adjusted to repair spelling involving final identify throughout para 3)

(Additional confirming by Adama Diarra in addition to Emmanuel Braun with Bamako; Mark John and also David Lewis in Dakar; Mathieu Bonkoungou throughout Ouagadougou; Ange Aboa inside Abidjan along with Pascal Fletcher in Johannesburg; Writing through Mark John; Editing by way of Tim Pearce)

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