U.N. chief proposes peacekeeping force for Mali

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Tuesday proposed a U.N. peacekeeping force for Mali and also recommended a “parallel” military force be created to confront radical Islamist threats.

Up to 11,200 troops were suggested for the peace keeping mission at a meeting of the Security Council.

The peacekeeping troops would only be enough to cover main towns “assessed to be at highest risk,” Ban said in a grim report on conditions in Mali that the U.N. Security Council will discuss Wednesday.

The parallel force would “conduct major combat and counter-terrorism operations and provide specialist support beyond the scope of the United Nations mandate and capability,” the U.N. chief said.

France sent troops to Mali in January to prevent an advance by Islamist forces on the capital Bamako. The Islamists and Tuareg separatists overran northern Mali one year ago, taking advantage of a vacuum left after a military coup.

Having been beaten out of Timbuktu and other Malian cities, the Islamists have retreated to desert and mountain hideouts from where they launch guerrilla attacks on French, Chadian and Malian forces.

“Terrorist groups and tactics, the proliferation of weapons, improvised explosive devices, unexploded ordnance and landmines are expected to pose significant threats” in Mali, Ban warned in his report.

France wants the 15-member council to pass a resolution in April setting up a peacekeeping force which could be in place by July.

The bulk of it would come from a West African force, known by the acronym AFISMA, which is already in Mali.

The U.N.-backed African force is due to take over from France when it starts withdrawing its 4,000 troops from the country in late April.

The report outlined the need for an international force to continue operating in Mali.

“Given the anticipated level and nature of the residual threat, there would be a fundamental requirement for a parallel force to operate in Mali alongside the U.N. mission in order to conduct major combat and counter-terrorism operations,” Ban wrote.

The parallel force would not have a formal U.N. mandate, though it would be operating with the informal blessing of the Security Council. The report did not specify a time limit for the mission.

Ban’s report and a separate document prepared by a top U.N. peacekeeping official portray a dark picture of the challenges ahead in Mali.

While the militant groups have gone underground, Ban’s report said there was a “crisis of governance” marked by “endemic corruption” and a lack of state authority.

Extremist groups are taking advantage of the lack of organized security measures.

Islamist fighters attacked northern Mali’s largest town, Gao, over the weekend. It was the third major offensive there by the rebels since the town was retaken by a French-led military operation in late January.

Effort are being made by the Malian government to return to normalcy amid the violence.

A political roadmap adopted by the transitional government calls for elections to be held by July 31.

But U.N. peacekeeping deputy chief Edmond Mulet said in a confidential report to Ban, obtained by AFP, that he thought it “unlikely” the elections could be held on time. Mulet has just returned from a mission to Mali to draft the options for the peacekeeping force.

Ban’s report said that with the weak central government and no sign of reconciliation between the northern and southern halves of Mali, “elections could provoke further instability or even violence.”