Mali : Americans Bungle French Take Action

Please recall that  I wrote about Mali not too long ago. Its a forsaken Islamic country in the Club of Doom in the Western Sahara.  The jihadists have  attempted to take over the country through brutality and violence. 

The fact is the Americans have been messing around in Mali as well. For the past four years they have been training the Malian Army and equipped them with guns and equipment. It is these US trained forces who have now "defected" to the jihadists and are using American weapons to cause chaos. This is another example of typical American bungling (or scheming). 

Yesterday the French decided to take over and have conducted airstrikes deep into Mali. They  have also put forces on the ground to retake territory from the jihadists. Here is the New York Times with a lengthy and well written report about Mali. I have truncated it here.

French Strikes in Mali Supplant Caution of U.S.

British soldiers loaded French matériel into a British Army cargo aircraft on Sunday for delivery to Bamako, Mali’s capital.

• BAMAKO, Mali — French jets struck Islamist strongholds in Mali on Sunday, shoving aside months of international hesitation after every other effort by the United States   failed.
• For years, United States tried to stem Islamic militancy by conducting ambitious counterterrorism program 
• last four years spent between $520 million and $600 million 
• program stretched from Morocco to Nigeria, American officials heralded Malian military as exemplary partner. Special Forces trained marksmanship, border patrol, ambush drills and counterterrorism skills.
• Pentagon’s Africa Command concluded that the coup had unfolded too quickly for American commanders or intelligence analysts to detect any clear warning signs.

The Disaster

• commanders, fruit of years of American training, defected — taking troops, guns, trucks and skills to the enemy. “It was a disaster,” 
• an American-trained officer overthrew Mali’s elected government, half the country to fall into the hands of Islamic extremists. 
• coup led by Capt. Amadou Sanogo, astounded and embarrassed top American military commanders.
• leaders of these units Tuaregs — the very ethnic nomads overrunning northern Mali.
• “.American aid turned out not to be useful,” “They made the wrong choice,” 
• relying on a group conducting a 50-year rebellion against the Malian state.
• American officials scrambling even to get a detailed picture of who they are up against.

French retake initiative

• Now, the French have entered the war themselves.
• France decided it could not wait any longer, striking the militants at the front line and deep within their haven.
• French warplanes went on the offensive, going after training camps, depots and other militant positions far inside Islamist-held territory 
• extremists enforced a harsh brand of Islam on the populace, cutting off hands, whipping residents and forcing tens of thousands to flee. 

This is my reading. The collapse of Tunisia, Libya and Egypt and the impending collapse of Syria has totally fired up the Wahhabis operating under the umbrella of Saudi Arabia. Plenty of weapons are now floating around this region - looking for an armed jihad.  Quiet and forgotten Mali is just one recipient of this new Wahhabi inspired jihadi resurgence in the wesern Sahara.

The French are still present in some numbers throughout this part of Africa. I think the Wahhabi jihadists have found a new target to keep them busy.  I think the French will soon be learning all about IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and suicide bombers.

There is a cheaper method to handle these jihadists. But I cant speak about it too freely because too many people will get upset with my suggestions. At the end of the day, there are jihadists everywhere. It involves debunking ancient books.  Boleh terima ke?

In conclusion look at the picture again. French materiel is being loaded onto British airplanes. There are the Americans and the French but what are the British doing in Mali? They are always in the background. The British were also involved in the recent 'peace negotiations' in Minadanao between the Bangsamoro, the Phillipine Government and Malaysia.  The British are always around.  I wonder who handles the Mali desk in London.