Brutal Islamic fighters left a blood soaked path in their wake as they rampaged through northern Mali, enforcing strict Sharia Law which reportedly included forced marriages and summary limb amputations.
So it's no wonder that wherever French President Francois Hollande goes in Mali, he's greeted like a total rock star.
The Associated Press reported that throngs of excited people punctuated Hollande's appearance in Mali's musical capital of Timbuktu.
From the Associated Press:
French President Francois Hollande bathed in the cheers and accolades of the thousands of people of this embattled city on Saturday, making a triumphant stop six days after French forces parachuted into Timbuktu to liberate the fabled city from the radical Islamists occupying it.
Swooping to their rescue, France unilaterally began a withering air campaign, bombing rebels into a hasty retreat. Then, France sent in their ground troops to finish cleaning out insurgents.
Though there are still doubts that France can make a clean break from combat operations and withdrawal, and some say that the Islamists have simply "melted" back into the culture with the hopes of riding out the storm.
Regardless, the French and Hollande alike are greeted with jubilation wherever they go — shouts of "liberate" and "Vive Le France" have become like common greetings.
The high-regard has actually bled into the French populous itself, a citizenry which was growing skeptical of Hollande's leadership with each passing day, until the day he invaded Mali. Recent polls suggest Hollande is enjoying quite a spike in popularity.
Although that spike may be a bit foreboding: George W. Bush enjoyed a spike in popularity when he invaded Iraq, one which helped carry him through to a consecutive term of service. Later, Iraq having become greatly unpopular, and on the heels of growing unemployment, his party would take a beating in the 2008 election.
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