Germany has sent a third military airplane and Nigeria has deployed its first troops to the war in Mali. The plane is set to stop over in France to collect cargo. It will then join two other planes before heading on to the Senegalese capital Dakar, where Germany plans to establish a base.
They will be used to fly troops from France and the West African regional bloc ECOWAS to fight in the Mali conflict. Meanwhile, Nigeria has sent its first troops to Mali after the country’s Senate approved the deployment of 1,200 troops. ECOWAS received a United Nations mandate for an African force in December. The southward advance by the Islamists this month and the subsequent French involvement has made them deploy sooner than had been planned.