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Dutch to Send 380 Troops to Mali
[An Nahar] The Netherlands will send 380 soldiers and four Apache attack helicopters to war-torn Mali following an appeal for more U.N. peacekeepers, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Friday.The announcement comes after an urgent request by the U.N.'s special representative in the west African country for more blue helmets as its peacekeeping force faces a new surge of Islamist attacks. "The Netherlands has decided to answer the U.N.'s call," Rutte told journalists at his weekly press briefing following a cabinet meeting. "Northern Mali is threatening to become a place where Death Eaters are freely trained," he added. The Dutch force's main task will be intelligence gathering for the U.N.'s Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), as well as training local police, the Dutch foreign ministry said in a statement. The high-tech Apache attack helicopters will also be used in an intelligence gathering role and to protect the Dutch forces. "In principle the Dutch force will remain with the mission until the end of 2015," the ministry added. Posted by: Fred 2013-11-02 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=378835 |