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Embassy staffers told to stay put in Mali as political situation improves
The Obama administration has told U.S. embassy staffers in Mali to stay put as the political situation in the southern part of the country improves following the military coup in March.
The new travel warning replaces an April advisory that allowed the departure of non-emergency personnel and their families. Staffers are still barred from unauthorized travel to the Islamist-dominated breakaway region in the north, however, which has been overrun by al Qaeda-linked militants.
“The Department of State is lifting the Authorized Departure of non-emergency personnel and all eligible family members of U.S. Embassy personnel,” the State Department said in the new travel warning. "While the security situation in Bamkao is improving, the country faces continued challenges including food shortages, internally displaced persons, and the presence in northern Mali of factions linked to Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)."
"We have instructed Embassy employees and their dependents to be cautious when traveling within Bamako," the travel warning states, "and we encourage U.S. citizens to exercise caution, remain vigilant, maintain situational awareness at all times, and take appropriate security precautions to ensure personal safety.”
The new advisory follows the installation of an interim government on Aug. 20. The Obama administration ruled out using military force to reunite the country back in June, but remains under pressure to contain the Islamist Ansar Dine group.
“U.S. citizens should note that the U.S. Embassy in Bamako has forbidden all travel by U.S. government employees and their dependents to regions north of the city of Mopti,” the travel warning states. “The U.S. Embassy requires all official travelers to the region of Mopti and areas within 50 kilometers of the Mauritanian border to have prior written authorization from the Ambassador. This designation is based on insecurity in areas adjacent to those zones, including the presence of AQIM and the threat of kidnapping, as well as banditry in the region."
