U.N. Vote Planned on Mali Security

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/20/world/africa/un-security-council-to-vote-on-mali-security.html

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The United Nations Security Council was expected to vote Thursday on a resolution that would approve the deployment of a multinational African force in Mali, along with Western training and equipment for the Malian Army, to help retake the northern part of the country from Islamist militias.

The resolution, drafted and offered for a formal vote by France, has widespread support among Mali’s neighbors and other African states and was expected to gain unanimous approval by the 15-member Security Council.

It would constitute the Council’s most assertive action to deal with the crisis in Mali. The country descended into mayhem after a military coup in March created a power vacuum that enabled Islamist extremists to occupy vast stretches of territory, including the ancient city of Timbuktu.

The militants have enforced a strict Islamic code of conduct on residents, committed human rights abuses and permitted Al Qaeda’s North Africa affiliate to operate training camps there. Ban Ki-moon, the United Nations secretary general, has said Mali is “at risk of becoming a permanent haven for terrorists and organized criminal networks.”

The draft resolution does not specify how the military operation would be financed, when it would begin or what the size of the multinational force would be.

Diplomats familiar with the negotiations that preceded the resolution said that about 3,300 troops from Nigeria and other African countries would be sent to Mali, that the European Union would provide training to the Malian Army, and that the United States would provide logistical support.