On
Casualties in
Mali, France
Points at
Resolution
It's Not
Under, Ban to
Deploy?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
January 22 --
After the Mali
meetings of
the UN
Security
Council on
Tuesday, Inner
City Press
asked French
Ambassador
Gerard Araud
about civilian
casualties,
about French
bombings
halting
humanitarian
aid in Gao,
Konna and
Mopti, and
about
executions by
France's
allies in the
Malian Army,
which includes
coup leader
Amadou Sanogo.
Araud's
response
was that
France
negotiated Security
Council
resolution
2085,
which includes
some human
rights
language. But
on his way
into the
Council in the
morning, when
Inner City
Press asked
when this
resolution
would be
implemented,
Araud replied
that France is
not operating
under
Resolution
2085.
After
quoting
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon
"applauding"
France's
intervention
(while only
"encouraging"
ECOWAS and the
African Union),
Araud said
France is
urging Ban to
quickly deploy
monitors in
Mali.
But
what of those
already
executed by
the Malian
Army?
During
the Security
Council
meeting, after
a number of
former French
colonies
praised
Operation
Serval, it was
said that 6000
troops might
become part of
AFISMA. Chad's
Ambassador
told Inner
City Press his
country's 2000
would not
necessarily
all be part of
AFISMA. So how
many are?
Inner
City Press
asked Araud
about the
critiques of
France's
intervention
leveled by
Egypt and
Turkey, among
others. Araud
replied only
on the first,
saying that
President
Morsi is
coming to
Paris. Well,
Gaddafi went
to Paris
before him,
and we see how
that worked
out. Watch
this site.
, 
