The United Nations’ top political official for Africa has bemoaned Mali’s decision to withdraw from a multinational military force in West Africa’s Sahel region, calling the move “unfortunate and regrettable”.
Assistant Secretary-General Martha Pobee told a meeting of the UN’s Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday that this week’s decision by Mali’s military government to leave the G5 Sahel force “is most certainly a step back for the Sahel.”
The force, which includes troops from Niger, Chad, Burkina Faso and Mauritania, was formed in 2017 to counter armed groups who have swept across the region in recent years, killing thousands of people and forcing millions to flee their homes.
But it has been hobbled by a lack of funding and has struggled to reduce the violence.
Meanwhile, Mali’s withdrawal further isolates the country – which has been hit with sanctions by West Africa’s regional political bloc, impacting jobs and industry – on both the regional and global stage.
Credit: Aljazeera.com
