Peace, By All Means Peace

"The rebels, as a result of religious intolerance, are killing people. They cut the hands, arms and the legs, everything, the women, the youths and so on."
Yayi Boni, African Union chairman

Oh, quite impossible, claims the Canadian Peace Alliance, outraged that Canada has lent itself, however feebly, to the French military's routing of the Islamist 'rebels' from northern Mali. They quote an authority on the subject, none other than the Zimbabwean criminal strongman, Robert Mugabe, who has stated that France has taken itself on a "colonialist venture".

Canada's contribution to the French onslaught against the alliance of Tuareg mercenaries-from-Libya-returned-home-with-weapons, their al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb cronies, along with the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa, and Insar Dine, famously the "Defenders of the Faith", is supremely modest.

$13-million pledged to aid the civilian population of Mali, and the airlift capacity of a CF C-17 Transport plane.

The residents of Timbuktu and their rescuers are attempting to assess the sweep of destruction that the invaders launched on their ancient heritage. Aside from those precious documents, manuscripts and objects they were able to conceal, buried in the desert sands. They are immensely relieved, after a dreadful year of occupation by the Islamists, to be freed from oppression and misery.

Grateful that France responded to the plea of the Malian government to come in with its warplanes and strafe and bomb the invading terrorist forces. Grateful for the 2,000-strong force of French soldiers, and the smaller contingent of British troops, along with American airlift capacity and that of Canada's offering.

The United Nations delegated the African Union to take charge of the situation, in aiding the Malian military in protecting the country and its vast desert stretches.  Where the routed Islamists have taken themselves into hiding with their equipment and their arms, preparing to wait out the situation until they deem the time is right to return and re-occupy their base in Timbuktu, Gao, Kidal and other desert towns.

The African Union, responding to the UN resolution, has gathered as many as 8,000 soldiers, finally, from the 16-member-strong Economic Community of West African States. As the French withdraw, the AU assembled military will co-operate with the Malian military to keep the Islamists at bay. They will have to pledge to go further; to hunt down and destroy their intent to return.

This is the reality of Africa today. Somewhat at odds with the charge from the Canadian Peace Alliance that insists the Government of Canada has allowed itself to be used as "a junior partner to a NATO aggression in Africa".  Rumours of Islamist terror groups presenting as a threat to African stability must be named for what it is: "Islamophobia".