THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: French President Francois Hollande on Tuesday denounced the "unfathomable stupidity" of Islamist radicals who destroyed Muslim shrines at Timbuktu in northern Mali.
"Everywhere in the world... when heritage is destroyed we will be there to battle against the groups motivated by the unfathomable stupidity which leaves all civilisations vulnerable," Hollande said, citing the Timbuktu vandalism.
West African defence and foreign ministers held talks this week on the possible deployment of regional troops to Mali amid reports that Islamists destroyed the tomb of a Muslim saint in a region under their control.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is trying to broker an end to the political crisis in Mali - which has been effectively sliced in two after a putsch.
"We have affirmed our willingness to support and encourage Mali in its efforts towards the legitimate regaining of its territorial integrity," Ivory Coast's Foreign Minister Daniel Kablan Duncan said after the meeting.
He described the task involved as "huge but not impossible." » | Tuesday, September 18, 2012
