Côte d'Ivoire refers arrest of 46 soldiers in Mali to ECOWAS
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - At the end of an extraordinary meeting of the Security Council held on Wednesday, the Ivorian government announced that it had referred the arrest of 46 of its soldiers by Mali to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission.
It has therefore urged the Commission to as soon as possible hold an extraordinary meeting of Heads of State and Government to examine the crisis between Côte d'Ivoire and Mali to secure the release of its soldiers as soon as possible.
"In view of the latest developments which are likely to undermine peace and security in the sub-region, the President of the Republic has instructed the Minister of State, Minister of Foreign Affairs to refer the matter to the ECOWAS Commission with a view to holding an extraordinary meeting of Heads of State and Government as soon as possible to examine the crisis between Côte d'Ivoire and Mali, in order to lead to the release of our soldiers as soon as possible," reads the communiqué issued at the end of the meeting chaired by President Alassane Ouattara.
The President of the Republic "reiterates to the 46 soldiers unjustly arrested in Mali and their families, all his support and solidarity in these difficult times," according to the statement.
It said Mr. Ouattara urged Ivorians to exercise calm and restraint.
"He assures them that all measures are taken so that our valiant soldiers return to our country soon," the statement said.
On 10 July 2022 in Bamako, 49 Ivorian soldiers were arrested. While Mali has charged these soldiers with attempted destabilization, Côte d'Ivoire has claimed their innocence, explaining that these soldiers are part of the UN mission in Mali.
"These Ivorian soldiers, deployed in Mali as the 8th detachment of the National Support Element within the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), were arrested on the grounds that they were mercenaries," said the Ivorian authorities' statement.
Côte d'Ivoire reacted officially on 12 July 2022, through a communiqué from the National Security Council, to indicate that the 49 soldiers were indeed Ivorian soldiers on an official and legal mission in Mali and to demand their immediate release.
The statement said that several contacts with Malian officials had subsequently led to the conclusion that misunderstandings and shortcomings were at the root of the soldiers' arrest.
"As a result, three female soldiers were released and returned to Côte d'Ivoire on 3 September 2022.
"On 9 September 2022, while the release of the 46 other soldiers was expected soon, whose arrest was considered, by Mali, as a judicial matter, the Malian authorities requested that in return for the release of these 46 soldiers, Côte d'Ivoire extradite to Mali, personalities who according to them, "benefit from the protection of Côte d'Ivoire to destabilize Mali," said the Ivorian authorities.
"This request confirms, once again, the fact that our soldiers are not, in any case, mercenaries but rather hostages," the same source said.
The National Security Council "considers this blackmail as unacceptable and demands the release, without delay, of our 46 soldiers," according to the statement, which said that Côte d'Ivoire, a country committed to peace, stability and respect for the rule of law in the sub-region, "cannot be part of a logic of destabilization of a third country".
In addition, he recalled his instructions that foreign political opponents living in Côte d'Ivoire are required to observe, in all circumstances, a duty of absolute reserve concerning the internal affairs of their country of origin, he said.
-0- PANA TNDD/IS/BBA/RA 14Sept2022
