Sep 28, 2012

France has granted its allies in the Sahel region a new batch of weapons ahead of a possible deployment of African troops in the Azawad region in northern Mali. A senior security source said that the countdown to a military intervention in northern Mali has begun, the exact date of which will be determined by France.

Security sources said that French and Western military commanders have devised a plan for military intervention [in Mali] and the deployment of an African force in northern Mali. According to the plan, residential areas and major cities in the Azawad region would be taken control of, and the armed groups would be expelled from cities and later [militarily] exhausted.

The first batch of French military equipment, which arrived from Senegal in scores of trailer trucks, was transported through the city of Dori in northern Burkina Faso along the border with Niger. The shipment of weapons was transferred from a French military base in Senegal, and included light weapons, armored vehicles, communications devices and field guns.

A source informed about anti-terrorism efforts in the Sahel region said that, given the large number of trucks that have crossed the border, the value of the French military aid must exceed 80 million Euros [$103 million].

French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian had pledged to grant emergency military aid to Niger until he is able to convince France's European allies — especially Germany — to provide further military and security assistance.