This report, the second of three 5-minute films made with Lindsey Hilsum for UK’s Channel 4 News covers Mali in August 2012. Mali,one of the most culturally diverse countries on earth, was under threat from al Qaeda.
In the north al Qaeda had driven out the struggling national army, seized their weapons and were now flying the al Qaeda flag.
“We’re frightened because there’s no government we can trust to protect us from the armed groups”, says Maulud Ibrahim, a Tuareg refugee.
“When we’ve conquered France, we’ll come to the USA, we’ll come to London and conquer the whole world”, says a military commander from the local al Qaeda ally, Defenders of the Faith.
For Tiebile Drame, the former Foreign Minister, the situation is getting serious. “The rest of the world should not stay just to look at the situation, we should be helped unless they would like to see another Somalia or another Afghanistan.”
Filmed by Mike Goldwater
Footage from the north of Mali by local cameramen
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