ABSTRACT
In January 2012, a coalition of Tuareg separatists and al-Qaida-linked jihadi groups seized control of northern Mali. A year later, they moved into southern Mali and threatened Bamako, Mali’s capital. This chapter discusses the causes of that crisis, as well as examining the multiple phases of the U.S.-supported French operation, Operation Serval, to halt the jihadi advance, reclaim control of northern Mali for the central government in Bamako, and weaken the jihadi threat. U.S. support to the French, augmented by important roles played by the United Nations and the European Union, provides a model of allied and multilateral cooperation.
