Mali president announces new prime minister
April 9, 2017
Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita announced Saturday that his brother, Prime Minister Modibo Keita, has been replaced by Abdoulaye Idrissa Maiga by way of presidential decree. Maiga was serving as defense minister of Mali.
The decree stated that the previous prime minister, Modibo Keita, had offered his resignation on Friday. Keita had served as prime minister since January 2015. Maiga is a close ally of President Keita and held his defense minister position since September 2016.
Mali has suffered from political instability since a coup d'etat in March 2012 overthrew its longtime president, Amadou Toumani Touré.
The German Bundeswehr maintains a troop presence in Mali, which the Bundestag (lower house of parliament) voted to increase to around 1,000 soldiers in January 2017.
France also maintains an anti-militant force in Mali after driving Islamist fighters linked with al-Qaida out of the northern part of the country, and the UN has deployed a peacekeeping mission in the West African nation. However, northern Mali is still witness to fighting between tribal militias and Islamist groups still attack Malian soldiers, UN peacekeepers and French troops.
kbd/kl (Reuters, malijet.com, Le Figaro)