Mali interim government urged by ECOWAS

A summit of West African leaders has called for a national unity government to end the political crisis gripping Mali since a military coup in March.

The regional bloc, Ecowas, also urged Mali to request international military intervention to win back the country's rebel-held north.

The area was seized by Islamist and Tuareg rebels after the March coup.
Since then, a shaky interim government has been formed in Mali, but the coup leaders remain powerful.

The Ecowas summit also called for the International Criminal Court to investigate alleged war crimes committed by the rebels in the north.

The meeting in Ouagadougou - capital of neighbouring Burkina Faso - was attended by six regional heads of state.

In a statement, they urged Mali's interim President, Dioncounda Traore, to request that Ecowas and the UN authorise the deployment of an Ecowas force to restore order in the country.

BBC/Cokey