UN Security Council authorizes African-led intervention force in Mali

The Security Council today authorized the deployment of an African-led International Support Mission in Mali, to be known as AFISMA, for an initial period of one year to assist the authorities in recovering rebel-held regions in the north and restoring the unity of the country.

Northern Mali has been occupied by radical Islamists after fighting broke out in January between Government forces and Tuareg rebels – just one of several security, political and humanitarian problems the West African nation has been dealing with this year.

Acting under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter, which allows the Council to use force in the face of a threat to peace or aggression, the 15-member body tasked the Mission with contributing to the rebuilding of the Malian Defence and Security Forces, as well as supporting the Malian authorities in “recovering the areas in the north under the control of terrorist, extremist and armed groups and in reducing the threat posed by terrorist groups.”

By the unanimously adopted resolution, the Mission will also be responsible for, among other tasks, supporting the Malian authorities in their primary responsibility to protect the population and to create a secure environment for the civilian-led delivery of humanitarian assistance and the voluntary return of internally displaced persons and refugees.