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Mali Neighbors Uphold Sanctions to Force Junta Handover

  • Regional bloc will soften sanctions as conditions are met
  • Junta released ousted president Keita in gesture of goodwill
A man wears a Mali national flag as demonstrators gather in Independence square in Bamako, on Aug. 21.

A man wears a Mali national flag as demonstrators gather in Independence square in Bamako, on Aug. 21.

Photographer: Annie Risemberg/AFP via Getty Images
Updated on

West African leaders will keep trade restrictions on Mali in place until the military junta that overthrew President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita in an Aug. 18 coup takes steps to install a civilian transition government.

“The summit decided to maintain the sanctions which will be lifted gradually based on the evolution of the discussions with the Malian group, the National Committee for the Salvation of the People,” Burkina Faso Foreign Affairs Minister Alpha Barry told journalists Friday after a meeting of the Economic Community of West African States.