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France bombs fighters positions in Mali

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The French Air Force has conducted airstrikes on fighters’ positions in northeastern Mali, as the French war in the West African country enters its fourth week.

On Sunday, France’s military spokesman, Colonel Thierry Burkhard said French fighter planes have targeted logistics centers run by local fighters in the Tessalit area situated some 70 kilometers from the Algerian border.

This comes after French President Francois Hollande, who arrived in Mali on Saturday for a one-day visit, told thousands of Malians in the capital, Bamako, that French troops would stay in Mali as long as necessary.

“France will stay with you as long as it takes, until the time for Africans themselves to replace us. Until then we will be beside you to the end, as far as north Mali,” Hollande said.

Thousands of people in Mali have been forced to flee their homes amid the French war, which involved some 3,500 troops on the ground supported by warplanes, helicopters and armored vehicles.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said more than 5,000 Malian refugees have arrived in Mauritania alone since January 11, when France launched the war under the pretext of halting the advance of the fighters in the African country.

The United States, Canada, Britain, Belgium, Germany, and Denmark have already said they would support the French war in Mali.

Analysts believe behind the military campaign are Mali’s untapped resources, including oil, gold, as well as the uranium in the region.

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