Jonathan: Al-Qaeda must be flushed out of Mali

West African regional bloc ECOWAS is committed to restoring peace to Mali and ensure Al-Qaeda is pushed out of the country’s north, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan said Friday.

“We must take action to root out the Al-Qaeda, drug traffickers, kidnappers and other criminal elements who are turning Northern Mali into a home for terrorists”, he said during a meeting with German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle.

Jonathan, who visited Mali recently, sought the support of Germany and the European Union, an official statement from his office said.

“The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is committed to restoring peace and normalcy to Mali, and therefore seeks the support of German and the European Union”, he told Westerwelle.

Jonathan said contact with Malians during his visit there showed a desire for peace and a commitment to remove the rebels from northern Mali.

He said that Nigeria’s contribution to Mali would include technical support for the military, the statement said.

ECOWAS has decided to deploy a regional force to Mali where a coup overthrew President Amadou Toumani Toure on March 22.

The north of the west African nation has fallen under the control of armed Islamist groups, some linked to Al-Qaeda, in the wake of the coup.

On October 12, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution preparing for the deployment of such a force for Mali, giving ECOWAS 45 days to firm up its plans.

The German minister who arrived Nigeria from Mali for the Nigeria-German Bi-National Commission meeting, said that his country was interested in the destiny of the sub-region, and was willing to help restore peace and normalcy to Mali.

The meeting will discuss bilateral trade and energy issues, Westerwelle said at the opening of the meeting, adding that Germany will work together with Nigeria “to overcome the threats and the challenges in the region.”

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Olugbenga Ashiru, is leading the Nigerian team to the talks.(AFP)

Meanwhile, One of the radical Islamist groups controlling northern Mali, Ansar Dine, on Friday sent delegations to Algeria and Burkina Faso to hold peace talks, a source close to the extremists said.

“Currently we have a delegation on its way to Ouagadougou and a second on its way to Algiers,” an aide to Ansar Dine leader Iyad Ag Ghaly told AFP on condition of anonymity.

“We are in favour of peace, and dialogue is necessary for peace. That is why we have sent these delegations,” he said. The envoys may also make a stop in Nigeria, another source within Ansar Dine told AFP.

The Burkinabe presidency confirmed to AFP that the delegation would meet President Blaise Compaore, who is the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)-appointed mediator in the Malian crisis.

Compaore, who is in favour of a negotiated end to the occupation rather than the use of military force, has already been in contact with the Ansar Dine leadership in recent months.