The West African bloc Ecowas has agreed to deploy troops to free Mali’s north from militants.
The regional leaders agreed at a summit that 3,300 soldiers, mainly from Nigeria, Niger and Burkina Faso, would be sent to Mali to retake the northern regions from Tuareg and Islamist militants.
The president of the Ivory Coast, Alassane Ouatarra, said that the soldiers can be deployed as soon as the UN Security Council approves the plan.