Four months after their arrest in Bamako, the case of the contingent of Ivorian soldiers detained in Mali is taking a new turn.
The leaders of West African states meeting in Abuja on Sunday (December 4th) demanded that the junta in power in Mali release before January 46 Ivorian soldiers who have been detained since July under penalty of sanctions, Western officials said. -Africans.
"We are asking the Malian authorities no later than January 1, 2023 for the release of the Ivorian soldiers," Omar Touray, chairman of the commission of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), told reporters.
Otherwise, ECOWAS will take sanctions, a West African diplomat told an AFP correspondent on condition of anonymity.
>> To read also: "Ivorian soldiers detained in Mali: Alassane Ouattara facing criticism from the opposition"
Otherwise, ECOWAS will take sanctions, a West African diplomat told an AFP correspondent on condition of anonymity.
Omar Touray also declared that ECOWAS reserved the possibility of acting if the soldiers did not recover their freedom before January 1.
Three soldiers released
Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé, who plays the good offices between Mali and Côte d'Ivoire in this crisis, will travel to Mali to "demand" the release of the soldiers, added the West African diplomat.
Mali has been arm wrestling with Côte d'Ivoire and ECOWAS since it arrested 49 Ivorian soldiers on July 10 on their arrival in Bamako.
Three have since been released.
Côte d'Ivoire and the UN claim that these soldiers were to participate in the security of the German contingent of blue helmets in Mali.
But Bamako says it considers them "mercenaries" who have come to attack state security.
With AFP
The summary of the
France 24 week invites you to come back to the news that marked the week
I subscribe
Take international news everywhere with you!
Download the France 24 app