BAMAKO, Mali - Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita has confirmed that his government is in contact with al-Qaida-linked extremist leaders as the West African country faces some of the worst violence since its crisis began in 2012, according to an interview with French media. ”Why not try contact with those who we know are pulling the strings of the situation in Mali?”Keita was asked about media reports that he had allowed former President Dioncounda Traore to meet with extremist leaders Amadou Koufa and Iyad Ag Ghali. Both were prominent leaders of the Malian extremist group Ansar Dine before a French-led military intervention in 2013. YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN...“I don’t know that he has remained that man after all that I remember today,” Keita told the French media outlets. Nearly 600 soldiers of the Malian army, made up of former rebels and regular army soldiers, began travelling to Kidal on Monday.

Source: thestar February 11, 2020 11:15 UTC