BAMAKO,
Mali
Thousands of people demonstrated in Mali's capital on Wednesday, backing the nation's military rulers and protesting perceived foreign meddling in the Sahel state.
The
protest comes as military strongman Colonel Assimi Goita faces growing international
pressure to renounce a possible deal with Russian private-security firm
Wagner.
Former
colonial power France -- which has thousands of troops in Mali -- warned
against the deal after reports Mali was close to hiring 1,000 Wagner
paramilitaries surfaced this month.
French
Defence Minister Florence Parly said this week that her government "will
not be able to cohabit with mercenaries".
Germany,
which also has troops in the war-torn nation of 19 million, said it would
reconsider its deployment should Mali strike a deal with Wagner.
And on
Wednesday, Estonia's Defence Minister Kalle Laanet told Vikerraadio, a state
radio station there, that if Mali reached a deal with Wagner, the Estonian
contingent would leave. They have about 100 soldiers there.
One police
official who asked to remain anonymous said around three thousand people had
turned out for Wednesday's rally in the capital Bamako.
Many
protesters waved Malian flags and carried pro-military placards. Some also
waved Russian flags.
Siriki
Kouyate, a spokesman for the group that staged the protest, said France's
military intervention in Mali had failed.
"This
cannot go on," he added.
Mali has
been struggling to quell a brutal jihadist insurgency that first emerged in
2012, but has since spread to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.
France
intervened in Mali in 2013 and beat back a jihadist advance, but the conflict
grew despite the presence of French troops.
French
military involvement has led to periodic protests in Mali, and is frequently
criticised on social media.
Wednesday's
protest also comes amid increasing concerns among Mali's partners that the
government will fail to hold elections early next year.
Goita
overthrew president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita last year, and staged a second coup
against an interim government in May.
While he
has promised to uphold a February 2022 deadline for elections set by the
interim government, few preparations have been made.
Earlier
this month, hundreds also protested in Bamako after the 15-nation Economic
Community of West African States said the election deadline was "non-negotiable".
In a
speech on Tuesday evening, Goita called on Mali's international partners to
adopt "a better reading of the situation" in the country. -
AFP
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