Macron in Mali for diplomatic push on Sahel

BAMAKO: French Pre sident Emmanuel Macron on Sunday (Monday in Manila) threw his weight behind a planned Sahel force to fight jihadists on a lightning visit to Mali but told countries in the region their efforts had to bear fruit.

Faced with a growing number of jihadist attacks in central Mali which have also hit neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger, the so-called G5 Sahel nations have moved to set up a regional force to tackle the threat.