Mali in crisis: a political and security overview

Mali has been in crisis since March 2012, when the military overthrew the government of Amadou Toumani Touré. Within weeks of the coup, a coalition of Tuareg rebels and militant Islamist armed groups with links to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb pushed the national army out of the north of the country. A weak and ineffective transitional government has been in existence in the south of the country since April but the north remains beyond its control. During October 2012 there has been growing momentum behind proposals to create a military intervention force, under the auspices of the Economic Community of West African States, which would attempt to retake the north. However, many questions remain about the wisdom and feasibility of such a course of action.