Occupying French troops in Mali may top 2,500: French War minister

War Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian says the number of French troops on the ground in the West African nation of Mali could top the initially-planned number of 2,500.

“Two thousand five hundred is what was initially announced, maybe that will be exceeded.” Le Drian said in a Saturday television interview.

He noted that the French troop count in the West African former colony has already reached 2,000.

France intervened in Mali on January 11 by launching an air offensive under the pretext of halting the advance of militants.

Chaos broke out in the African country after Malian President Amadou Toumani Toure was toppled in a military coup on March 22, 2012. The Western-backed coup leaders said the move was in response to the government’s inability to contain the Muslim Tuareg resistance in the north of the country.