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Mali conflict: French troops 'seize' Islamist towns Mali conflict: French troops 'seize' Diabaly, Douentza
(about 3 hours later)
French and Malian troops have seized the key Malian towns of Diabaly and Douentza from militant Islamists, the French defence minister has said.French and Malian troops have seized the key Malian towns of Diabaly and Douentza from militant Islamists, the French defence minister has said.
French warplanes have bombed suspected Islamist positions around both towns since France launched a military operation in Mali on 11 January. A BBC reporter in Diabaly says the town bears the scars of conflict, with burnt-out vehicles and chunks of shrapnel strewn on the ground.
A column of French and Malian troops entered Diabaly, said an AFP news agency reporter with the soldiers. Islamist fighters fled Diabaly and Douentza last week after a French bombing campaign started on 11 January.
France has sent some 2,000 troops to help Malian forces fight the militants. Egypt's Islamist President Mohammed Morsi has condemned France's actions.
It has called on West African countries to speed up the deployment of a regional force of more than 3,000. "We never accept military intervention in Mali, because this will exacerbate conflict in the region," he said at an Arab economic summit in Saudi Arabia.
France has sent some 2,000 troops to help Malian forces fight the militants, saying it entered the conflict because the insurgents, in control of the north, were advancing south, threatening to turn Mali into a "terrorist state".
It has called on the West African regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas), to speed up the planned deployment of a force of more than 3,000.
Burnt-out vehicles destroyed by helicopter fire, chunks of shrapnel littering the ground and Malian soldiers picking through the debris - the scars of conflict in the small town of Diabaly.
It is the first town to have been recaptured by French forces on behalf of the Malian government.
A resident said hundreds of Islamists had occupied the town earlier this month, and the Malian army was forced to withdraw when the insurgents used the population as human shields.
It may also be that the Malian army was overwhelmed and needed French help to retake the town.
Amongst all the destruction, there was a bizarre sight - the mayor of Diabaly walking through the sandy streets in a smart suit with his ceremonial sash of office across his chest.
He thanked the Malian army and the French in every conversation he had.
But during a visit to Berlin, Ecowas chairman and Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara urged German Chancellor Angela Merkel to send troops.
"Germany has soldiers in Afghanistan and it has the capacity to send them also to Mali," he said.
An Islamist group in Nigeria has said it carried out an attack last week which killed two Nigerian troops as they prepared to deploy to Mali.An Islamist group in Nigeria has said it carried out an attack last week which killed two Nigerian troops as they prepared to deploy to Mali.
Ansaru said it targeted the troops because the Nigerian military was joining efforts to "demolish the Islamic empire of Mali".Ansaru said it targeted the troops because the Nigerian military was joining efforts to "demolish the Islamic empire of Mali".
'Total reconquest''Total reconquest'
Nigeria has pledged to send 1,200 troops to Mali, with the first 50 deployed on Thursday. Nigeria has pledged to send 1,200 troops to Mali, with the first 50 deployed last week.
Togolese and Senegalese solders make up the remaining 100 troops already in Bamako, AFP reports. Togolese and Senegalese solders make up the remaining 100 troops already in Bamako, AFP news agency reports.
Mali's Islamist fighters fled Diabaly, about 400km (250 miles) from the capital, Bamako, on Friday. The BBC's Marks Doyle reports from Diabaly that French troops spearheaded the operation to retake the town, which is about 400km (250 miles) from the capital, Bamako.
On Monday, French soldiers from the 21st Marine Infantry Regiment as well as parachutists and Malian troops entered the town after reconnaissance flights by Gazelle helicopters, according to an AFP reporter who was with the soldiers. They brought Malian forces along with them, partly as a public relations exercise, he says.
They had set out at dawn from the nearby government-controlled town of Niono. In a bizarre sight, Diabaly Mayor Oumar Diakite has been walking through the town's sandy streets in a smart suit with his ceremonial sash of office across his chest, thanking Malian and French forces in every conversation, our correspondent says.
French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said that Diabaly was now under the control of French and Malian troops, AFP reports. Mali's Islamist fighters fled Diabaly on Friday.
The central town of Douentza, about 800km (500 miles)from Bamako, had also been recaptured, he was quoted as saying. They held the town for only about a week, seizing it after France's intervention in Mali.
French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said that Diabaly was now under the control of French and Malian troops, AFP news agency reports.
The central town of Douentza, about 800km (500 miles) from Bamako, had also been recaptured, he was quoted as saying.
Army commanders had earlier expressed fears that Islamists fleeing Diabaly had planted landmines.Army commanders had earlier expressed fears that Islamists fleeing Diabaly had planted landmines.
On Sunday, Mr Le Drian said France was seeking "total reconquest" of northern Mali.On Sunday, Mr Le Drian said France was seeking "total reconquest" of northern Mali.
"We will not leave any pockets" of resistance, he told French television."We will not leave any pockets" of resistance, he told French television.
The Islamist groups currently control a vast area in the Sahara Desert, larger than France. The Islamist groups currently control an of the Sahara Desert larger than France.