APA-Bamako (Mali) MINUSMA closes its 9th base and may withdraw from Mali a little earlier than expected.
The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) officially closed its Ansongo base on Saturday, November 18. The closure, which is the ninth of the mission’s twelve camps, is part of the second phase of its plan to withdraw from Mali by December 31.
The camp was handed over to the civil authorities, represented by the Prefect of Ansongo, Ahmed Ag Aklinine, by Hawa Ahmed Youssouf, Head of the MINUSMA regional office in Gao.
Opened a decade ago, the camp has enabled peacekeepers to contribute to the stabilization of the Ansongo cercle, in the Gao region. This has been achieved through security operations, notably on the cross-border road linking Niger and Mali, ‘Route Nationale 17’ (Highway 17), which is vital for the country and the region.
Since its deployment in the cercle, the UN mission has carried out a number of projects and activities, including the construction and equipping of a police station. Fuel supplies have also enabled the Gendarmerie and Police to undertake patrols to secure the town. In addition, the airstrip was regularly secured to enable humanitarian missions to work in optimal conditions.
In addition, a MINUSMA investment of more than 818 million FCFA has enabled the rehabilitation and equipping of buildings for the Malian Defense and Security Forces (FDSM), the repair of dykes and the construction of market gardening perimeters. The supply of drinking water and the electrification of arteries in the town of Ansongo and other localities in the cercle, with the aim of reducing community conflicts and improving the working environment for the FDSM to better carry out their regalian mission, are also part of the efforts made by the UN Mission.
The combined efforts of MINUSMA and the Malian authorities have considerably reduced the presence of armed terrorist groups, leading to a significant drop in incidents against civilians and the FDSM.
However, despite these improvements, the persistence of pockets of insecurity in the cercle remains a challenge, mainly due to the limited presence of national authorities and access constraints. Terrorist groups such as the Islamic State in the Sahel contribute strongly to this insecurity through sporadic and deadly attacks.
Withdrawing from Mali earlier than planned
After the Ansongo base, the Blue Helmets will for good, leave their Mopti base in the first weeks of December, before beginning the liquidation phase which will concern the Bamako, Gao and Timbuktu sites, from January 1, 2024.
To date, MINUSMA has repatriated 8,098 of the 12,944 uniformed personnel deployed in Mali. Of the 927 civilians, 266 have left Mali. In all, 8,364 peacekeepers have already left Mali. Sources indicate that MINUSMA, which is closing its 9th base, may be withdrawing from Mali a little earlier than expected.
Deployed in July 2013, it is the costliest UN peacekeeping mission in terms of human lives, with the deaths of over 300 peacekeepers recorded, the overwhelming majority of them through hostile acts.
MD/ac/fss/abj/APA