France to start withdrawing troops from Mali in March
France plans to start withdrawing its troops from Mali in March.
This was stated by the French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. "We will continue to operate in that country’s north, where some terrorist havens still remain," Reuters quotes the Minister as saying.
The current strength of the French force in Mali is around 4000 people.
The anti-terrorist operation in the West African country began on January 11th.
The conflict in Mali erupted in spring 2012, when a military group staged an armed uprising in the capital, Bamako.
The Tuaregs and Islamist armed groups capitalized on the coup.