FRANCE PLANNING TO DEPLOY DRONES TO NORTHERN MALI

France is planning of deploying drones to gather intelligence report in northern Mali as part of helping the Economic Community of West Africa forces yet to be deployed to its former colony Mali.

An anonymous source the Associated Press picked from the French Defence Ministry in Paris has it that France is planning to move some surveillance drones from Afghanistan to the West Africa nation by the end of this year.

It is unclear which country France will be obtaining these drones from as France is believed not to have any armed drones.  

 An unconfirmed report has it that hundreds of Jihadist probably from the Islamic Maghreb are arriving in northern Mali to help fight any possible military intervention from the West Africa bloc and the United Nations.

France, the former colonial power of Mali until 22^ND of September 1960 when the country gained independence, has airpower and hundreds of troops in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Chad and Gabon, which were all once French colonies in Africa.

This latest development will help strengthen the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) to deploy troops in northern Mali to fight the insurgency in the north of the country.

France succeeded in pushing the United Nations by persuading secretary general Ban Ki-moon, to allow West African countries to organize a direct military intervention in northern Mali, where armed Islamist groups have taken control following Tuareg separatist rebellion early this year

The French president François Hollande has promised not to send French troops but will offer logistical support and training to the West African forces to be deployed.

Mali was hit by a  rebellion to break away as an independent nation by the conservatives Muslim in the north of the country which was followed by a coup d’état led by Captain Amadou Sanogo who ousted the then president  Amadou Toumani Toure 21^st of March this year.