ECOWAS Foreign Affairs Ministers on Friday in Abidjan said the bloc would ensure the restoration of peace in Mali, declaring the “inviolability of the country’s borders.”
?This was contained in a communiqué made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) and signed by the Ivorian Foreign Affairs minister, who said that the rebel group that split Mali had violated the integrity of the country’s border.
“By occupying half the country, constitutes a real obstacle to the peace process in the sub-region.
“The rebellion ignores the inviolability of borders decreed at the end of colonisation. ECOWAS would ensure the effectiveness of the restoration of original boundaries to strengthen the credibility of our institution.’’
NAN reports that the ministers had considered the possibility of sending peace keepers into the country to quell the upsurge of the rebels, Tuareg.
The Tuareg rebels, National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad, had last week declared independence for a part of the country and called up a sharia guide for the region.
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