AU Lifts Mali Suspension

The African Union has lifted the
suspension it imposed on Mali after
a military coup in the country in
March.
The body has also endorsed a plan
calling for fresh elections and the
return of law and order, according to
an AU spokesman. AU officials have also been discussing
the logistics of an intervention force
to help Malian authorities recover
areas seized by Islamists in the north. The territory was overrun by militants
in the chaos following the March
coup. The AU's Peace and Security Council
had decided "to lift the suspension of
Mali from the activities of the AU. Mali
is therefore invited to participate in
full," Ramtane Lamamra, AU Peace
and Security Commissioner, told the Reuters news agency. The AU is
also finalising planning for a
deployment of an African-led
international force in Mali, according
to Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma,
chairwoman of the AU Commission. However, the AU would leave the
"door open" for those rebel groups
that wished to negotiate, she added. Chaotic aftermath The March coup
was carried out by
disaffected soldiers who overthrew
President Amadou Toumani Toure,
claiming his government had not
dealt effectively with a Tuareg
rebellion in the north. In the aftermath of the coup, Islamists
took over several towns in the north,
initially along with Tuareg rebels, but
the alliance subsequently broke
down. Earlier this month, the UN Security
Council passed a resolution paving
the way for military intervention in
Mali and asking African organisations
to formulate a plan for such an
intervention within 45 days. Both Mali's government and the West
African regional body Ecowas have
both expressed readiness for an
international force to intervene, with
Ecowas proposing a force of 3,000. Meanwhile, the US is working with
regional and international partners to
counter what it fears is al-Qaeda's
presence in Mali, Defence Secretary
Leon Panetta told reporters on
Wednesday. "I've made clear… we have to ensure
that al-Qaeda has no place to hide
and that we have to continue to go
after them wherever they try to
develop a command-and-control
capability from which they could conduct attacks," he said. The
Islamist groups who seized
control in northern Mali are suspected
of allowing al-Qaeda infiltration and
of committing human rights abuses in
their rigid application of Islamic law.

Source: BBC News