the UN Security Council ends the mission of peacekeepers in the country

End of Operation Minusma. At the request of Bamako, the UN Security Council put an end, Friday, June 30, to the mission of the Blue Helmets in Mali. The resolution adopted unanimously by the 15 members of the Council provides that from July 1, the blue helmets will cease their activities to organize their departure “by December 31”. Until the end of September, however, they will still have the possibility of protecting civilians “in the immediate surroundings” of their positions.

The mission, which has around ten bases spread over the territory, was created in 2013 to help stabilize a state threatened with collapse under the jihadist push, protect civilians, contribute to the peace effort and defend human rights. . On June 16, in a speech before the Security Council, Malian Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop denounced the“failure” of the UN mission and demanded his “withdrawal without delay”.

More than 170 blue helmets killed since 2013

Relations between Bamako and Minusma had deteriorated significantly since the military took power in 2020. The UN regularly denounced the obstacles of the Malian authorities to the movement of peacekeepers and had to deal with the defections of troop-contributing countries, cooled by the multiplication of attacks against the mission. Since 2013, 174 peacekeepers have been killed.

A few days before the announcement of the Malian junta, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, had judged the presence of the Minusma “invaluable” and recommended maintaining it at constant staff levels, refocusing it on limited priorities. Several countries in the region, “particularly concerned about the expansion of extremist groups” And “the risk of spreading instability”, had even pleaded for a strengthening of his mandate, according to his report.