Belgium to send extra troops to Mali

Belgium will send extra troops to Mali, reports Flanders News. The soldiers will be deployed to protect a French military base there, after France asked Belgium for 160 soldiers; the federal government has agreed in principle to send half that number. An official announcement on Belgium’s contribution to the Mali mission is expected shortly. Two platoons made up of a maximum of 80 infantry soldiers will be sent to Mali from the Leopoldsburg base in Limburg province, and they will be protecting a base around 200km from the capital, Bamako. The French army has been helping the Malians to drive back Islamist rebels who had been advancing south. Previously, Belgium made two C-130 Hercules aircraft available and two Belgian Agusta helicopters have also been deployed, which are used to transport injured soldiers from the front and are based at Segou, 235km northeast of Bamako. In total, 183 Belgian soldiers are now in Mali.