Swiss impose sanctions on those undermining peace in Mali

Despite the deployment of thousands of UN troops, Mali remains in conflict Keystone

The Swiss government has imposed sanctions against various individuals and groups in conflict-riven Mali in line with a September United Nations Security Council resolution.

The measures include the freezing of assets of as yet unnamed people and a ban on travel for individuals or entities acting to undermine peace, security and stability in Mali.

“At present there are no entries on the list of persons and entities targeted by these measures,” the Swiss government said in a statement.

The West African country has been in a state of crisis since Islamic rebels took control of the north of the country between 2012 and 2013 following a coup d’état in March 2012. Swiss missionary worker Beatrice Stöckli remains a hostage in Mali since being kidnapped by the ‘Group to Support Islam and Muslims’ in January 2016.

Efforts to restore order to Mali have included elections in 2013 and 2016 and the signing of the Agreement on Peace and Reconciliation in Mali in 2015. Despite these measures, “difficulties persist in the implementation of the agreement due to government instability, social dissatisfaction and terrorist attacks in the north of the country,” the statement added.

The sanctions have been imposed in an effort to push forward the peace and reconciliation agreement.

The UN has deployed more than 11,000 troops in Mali as part of its Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization MissionExternal link, that was established in 2013. But peacekeepers have also been targeted by armed insurgents. In August, eight people were killed during an attack on a UN facility in Timbuktu.