Army chiefs from four Sahelian nations held a meeting in Bamako Friday to reinforce the fight against insecurity in a region threatened by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQMI).
Army chiefs of staff from Mali, Niger and Algeria, as well as Mauritania's deputy army chief, took part in the special meeting of the joint command of their armies.
The meeting took place just a day after bomb attack that killed 16 in the Moroccan city of Marrakesh, with Al-Qaeda among the suspects.
A colonel in the Malian army said the meeting would focus on "the need to fight insecurity in the Sahel-Sahara band with a coordination effort between countries."
"No subject is taboo. We'll talk about everything," the source added.
The meeting comes after AQMI recently set up a new base in a forest in the west of Mali, raising fears it may be used to launch attacks against neighbouring Mauritania.
This vast desert zone is a base and hunting ground for AQMI which has stepped up activities in recent years, carrying out kidnappings of mostly foreign citizens, executions and drug trafficking.
The army representatives would later meet Malian President Amadou Toumani Toure, the presidency said.
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