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AN AL-QAEDA-linked group has said it is ready for talks to free a French hostage in Mali as French-led troops advanced toward the Islamists’ northern bastions after recapturing frontline central towns.
The surprise offer from the Movement for Jihad and Oneness (MUJAO) came on the 16th day of a military operation led by France in its former west African colony to stop MUJAO and other Islamist groups pushing south towards the capital Bamako.
“The MUJAO is ready to negotiate the release of Gilberto,” said spokesman Walid Abu Sarhaoui, referring to Gilberto Rodriguez Leal, a 61-year-old French national of Portuguese origin who was kidnapped in western Mali on November 20.
“We Muslims can come to an understanding on the issue of war,” he added, without elaborating.
West African defence chiefs meanwhile met to review the slow deployment of regional forces to bolster the French-led offensive against Islamists at an emergency meeting in Ivory Coast’s main city Abidjan.
Although the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) regional bloc has pledged more than 4,500 soldiers, their deployment has been delayed by financing and logistical problems.
Chad, which neighbours Mali and is not an ECOWAS member, has promised 2,000 additional troops. They are grouping in Niger, Mali’s eastern neighbour, with 500 troops from Niger to open a new front against the Islamists.
The African Union said it would be calling on its members to bolster the strength of the African force.
The AU would also seek support from the United Nations for the operation, in the form of transport, medicine and field hospitals, peace and security commissioner Ramtane Lamamra told reporters.
“We definitely know, based on the first assumptions… that the force size will have to be significantly augmented,” Lamamra told reporters.
While a fraction of the African forces have arrived in Bamako and are slowly deploying elsewhere, the French and Malian forces have done all of the fighting.
France has already deployed 2,300 troops to Mali and defence officials acknowledge the force will exceed 2,500 soldiers initially set as the upper limit.
Yesterday, the French and Malian forces captured Hombori, another northern town in their advance on the Islamist stronghold of Gao.
A Malian security source said the troops would press on to Gao. Along with Kidal and Timbuktu, it is one of the three major northern towns where the Al Qaeda-linked Islamists have imposed a harsh form of Islamic law (sharia) for 10 months.
To the centre, French-led forces who on Monday had recaptured the town of Diabaly were pushing northeast towards the town of Lere with the aim of taking control of Timbuktu, still further north.
In April last year, Gao, Timbuktu and Kidal were seized by an alliance of Tuareg rebels — who wanted to declare an independent homeland in the north — and hardline Islamist groups.
The Islamist groups include MUJAO, Ansar Dine, a homegrown Islamist group, and Al-Qaeda in the Maghreb, of which MUJAO is an offshoot.
The Islamists quickly sidelined the Tuaregs to implement their own Islamic agenda. They imposed a harsh interpretation of sharia law, flogging, stoning and executing transgressors, forbidding music and television and forcing women to wear veils.
But plans for a second front against the Islamists were hit on Friday when the insurgents bombed a key bridge at Tassiga which would have given African troops in Niger easy access to Gao.
Aid agencies have expressed increasing concern about the growing food crisis for civilians in the vast semi-arid north of Mali and the drought-wracked Sahel as a whole.
France has asked several Western countries and others to provide logistical support such as planes to allow aerial refuelling, sources close to Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said.
Britain, which has already contributed two C-17 transport planes to airlift military equipment, said it had sent a surveillance plane to aid operations.
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Ol granny used say…..’ what’s good for the goose is good for the gander’
@Frank Mc Carthy: Make America Gander Again.
@Frank Mc Carthy: Did this fictitious personage not say ‘What’s *sauce* for the goose …’?
@Setanta O’Toole: Make American Trans Gander Again..
@If you’re: so back the natives because the natives have a very trans way of living
@Frank Mc Carthy:
So everyone in America should be let out of jail…
Everyone should just quote the Hunter Pardon and be let out jail…
Note: Hunter has been investigated by a special prosectuor team for 6 years for crimes that are not jailable offences for a normal US Citizen. Hunter has cooperated with the investigation and even got a deal with a Trump appointed prosecutor.
Trump on the other hand interfered with witnesses and refused to acknowledge his guilt. By Trump not admitting guilt, he saying he would break the law again..
Hunter clearly showed he subject to US Law and trump has shown that he believes he is above the law.
@Jack Dermody: Trump is not in jail so whatever you were trying to say is pointless
The choice of photo of Trump shows opinion.
@thomas molloy: Nothing gets past you.
@Louis Jacob: Well, we never seen an equivalent photo of Kamala Harris in Irish media. Has something changed in the world of supposedly fair journalism. ?
@thomas molloy: Have you not seen the video of Kamalla released this week. All the progressive sites showed it. It’s hardly flattering.
@thomas molloy: is there such a thing as a decent picture of trump? He is an elderly and obese perma fake tanned man with a Bet Lynch-esque sweep on his barnet.
@thomas molloy: It’s Trump looking mega-smug: a trademark look that his supporters normally love.
Old Joe must have seen this coming, having left the door wide open for Trump to flaunt.
@Toyo Ke: When first heard of the pardon, I thought it a bad move, but when review the convictions, jail time is not a normal outcome after pay the IRS back what owed with interest, and the same for applying for a gun while a felon. Unless actually committed a further offence, jail is abnormal.
We’ve been hearing about all the so-called evidence on Hunter’s laptop for years now without seeing any proof.
So yeah, I think it was Biden simply exercising some of his remaining power to save his son from dying in jail for things that wouldn’t ordinarily get sent to.jail for.
The door was already open. Trump would have been trying to do this sort of stuff regardless. He’d already stated his intentions.
All this changes is the narrative for what was already going to happen.
@ben wu: Arwa Mahdawi in the Guardian:
‘Look, I can certainly understand why Biden wants to protect his child. We all want to protect our children. But one thing Biden’s presidency, and his enabling of what many experts have termed a genocide in Gaza, has made clear is that the law doesn’t protect all children equally. As I write this, the former Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant – who has an active warrant for his arrest from the international criminal court (ICC) – is in New York before meeting with members of the Biden administration. His invitation to the US is essentially a middle finger to international law and the ICC from Biden, who has continuously shielded Israel from facing any sort of accountability. That’s a far bigger deal to me than Biden pardoning Hunter but it’s part of the same problem: a two-tiered justice system that routinely shields the powerful and punishes the powerless. Some people are born Hunters, others prey.’
@Toyo Ke: trump pardoned all sorts of cret–inous creatures or have you forgotten that. Even made one of them an ambassador after that.
@Brendan O’Brien: That’s a fair point as a wider discussion, but not really salient to this topic of pardons.
USA is not a signatory country to the ICC, neither is Israel.
@ben wu: Agreed. The article is worth reading, though, as most of it is salient. I think it was a bad move by Biden.
@Brendan O’Brien: It’s not chess. It’s his son’s life. It was the right thing to do. His family have suffered too much for his political ambitions. Any father would do the same.
@Louis Jacob: I think the law should be allowed to take its course. Interference like this will only increase people’s disrespect for the law, regardless of the circumstances of this case.
@Brendan O’Brien: At that point, it would suggest that presidential pardons in general aren’t a great idea.
Biden hasn’t done the usual swathe of them yet, so it shows there’s a particular need for this one to happen now.
@Dave G Doe: persecution complex for sure.
@Louis Jacob: then why not go through the official channels of pardons office Louis? Why has it been back dated to January 2014? It’s a bad move, as if Joe Biden is ever taken to court Hunter will have to give evidence and will not be able to use the 5th to get out of it. Biden thought he was covering his own back, but this could back fire on him big time
@Louis Jacob: How have they suffered for his political ambitions?
@ben wu: cause they’re authoritarian countries that cosplay as democracies. They’ll trumpet the ICC when it suits them .
@Paul Hayes: Well, USA was a big player in forming the ICC, but then didn’t want their people subject to the sort of crimes it rules on, so didn’t sign up to it.
Getting back to topic at hand, it’s worth noting that Trump pardoned 4 Blackwater operatives that were fully responsible for the Nisour Square.17 unarmed civilians killed and another 20 wounded.
That his Education Secretary was the sister of the CEO of that company, I’m sure had nothing to do with it.
First thing Trump should do is Pardon the George Floyd cops.
@Dan Murphy: The murder charges are state charges and cannot be pardoned by the POTUS. Typical grasp of law for a Trumper you have.
Trump pardoned a dozen drug traffickers, bypassed and ignored the DoJ’s input, pardoned dozens of republican elected officials, business cronies, lawyers, friends, donors and campaign officials. He promised to pardon January 6th criminals who beat cops. I don’t care about Biden pardoning his last remaining son.
@Jack Hayes: he pardoned himself by pardoning his son. All those dodgy deals and shakedowns with big businesses in Asia and Ukraine that Hunter fronted. He always referred to the big guy, like ” the big guy said he’ll do it, ” or ” I spoke to the big guy and he signed off on going ahead with the transaction”. Biden and his son are as bent and crooked as an S hook. That’s why Biden back dated the pardon.
It’s nothing compared to what trump is going to do when he gets back to the office, but that’s what the American people voted for.
@Philip Slevin: Yes, soon to be known as Adolf Trump.
So many people cleaned up on Trump, all my bets came up plus i laid the corpse & Harris. Happy days. A fella in France had 28 million on Trump, wise man.
@Robert Bell: what a clown comment. Imagine being happy a multiple sexual assaulter of women, convincted felon, bankruptee, failed former president, carpet bagged, draft dodger, serial liar and golfer of over 25% of his last shambles back in the oval office. Maybe he can ask questions like can we nuke the next hurricane again or perhaps finally learn what a tariff is. Appalling stuff.
@Robert Bell: All your bets came up in a 2 horse race? You’re a regular genius.
Plus, why would you lay bets in a two horse race in an unlimited market, when you would have to offer higher odds? Seems abit dopey unless you’re a licensed bookie.
You had a good little fib going there, but you just took it too far.
@Louis Jacob: Unless you mean you had sex with a corpse.
@Ted Daly: You OK Hun.
@Robert Bell: so you’ve got a gambling problem.
Thanks for letting us all know.
Sad.
@Fergus O’Donnell: He sure does. He doesn’t seem to know how it works.
@Louis Jacob: I guess you do not know how Betfair works!! You can bet & lay on same horse, match, whatever. I backed Trump at 7-1 nothing dopey about that! plus laid the corpse @ 6-4 & harris just under evens.
@Fergus O’Donnell: your opinion is different to reality.
@Robert Bell: Betfair is accused in the UK of recently driving one young man to suicide… With their behaviour I mean obviously some personal responsibility comes in but it sounds quite shady
Pardon my French but f… Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
@Anthony Curran: Now you said it. Two slieveens is all they are. But what the boys on here spend their morning getting all butthurt about them.
@Louis Jacob: *watch
“No one’s above the law”… sure, for us lowly saps.
Shocker.
@Setanta O’Toole: trump pardoned some serious traitors. Behave.
@Ted Daly: Good man Ted.
Biden has now given Trump complete free reign for Trump to pardon Don Jr for all the pints he pretended to pay for for the locals in Doonbeg a few years ago.
These pardons are ridiculous regardless of who issues themselves. Pardoning one’s self is an act of a guilty man.
As if Trump wasn’t gonna push for himself to be excused while Jailing Hunter for as long as possible anyways.
Trump is a horrible excuse for a human being
Putin’s B Achoo.
Anyone know what’s going on with this? The Journal seems to be ” oblivious”.
@Fidgenti: I could do without reading the same identical information that has already been reported elsewhere.
@Jack Hayes: That doesn’t really answer the question I asked.
@Fidgenti: Not much of a story until there’s a name.
Absolute lunatic this fella
@Derek O Gorman: have you been writing homophobic comments again or u taking a break
How many of the same cowards who ‘elected’ Michael Lowry would back a Trump? Let’s face it. Inverted commas because I’m sorry but if people believe that Lowry was always democratically elected… Hah !
Pardon Ross Ulbricht.
As much as I dislike him, he for once has a point. Did not see the rationale in Biden “pardoning” his son.
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