French Airstrike on Mali

[Centurion40]

French troops make gains, and an election is in the Malian air.

A battle is under way to secure Kidal, the last major town in the sweep to flush out militants in the north. The French military said it seized the airport in Kidal on Tuesday night, thus gaining control of a major point of access. French forces are focusing on recapturing airports while Malian forces take over the cities, French army spokesman Col. Thierry Burkhard said.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/31/world/africa/mali-conflict/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

[Martok]

...And the French are already gearing up to leave. 

"Nobody questions France's rapid deployment, but the ability to hold on to the cities and territory is an immense challenge. It is not clear how they will be able to sustain the recent gains," said Alex Vines, head of the Africa program at Chatham House. "The Islamist extremists have not been defeated. They have melted into the heat haze of the desert."

Many fear the Islamists will attempt to hide among civilian populations in outlying villages, only to return and attack the weaker African forces once the French are gone.

http://www.denverpost.com/nationworld/ci_22484969/french-take-town-kidal-might-leave-mali-soon?source=rss

[Longdan]

That is how they do stuff these days.  Go in, shoot a bunch of whoever is annoying them, and let the locals
try to sort it out.  Rinse and repeat.  They have been following that formula in that area for a long time.
They do not stick around militarily to deal with stuff but they will come back if the legitimate government
asks.  They have been doing that in Chad (Tchad) for a while and it has made the news periodically.
Generally in the NorthAm media you do not get much info on what France is doing.  The Brits abandoned
many of their colonies in a fit of post colonial pique.  The French left theirs...... but frequently with a deal to
come back for a while if trouble like this develops.