German military forced to suspend Mali mission over flight permits

Germany's UN-sanctioned military mission in Mali has again been forced to suspend its operations in the West African nation due to a lack of overflight permission, a spokesperson for the Bundeswehr said on Saturday.
German operations in Mali are no longer taking place as permission for landing and overflights for medical evacuations have been suspended, a spokesperson for the Bundeswehr's Operations Command told dpa on Saturday.
The Malian government has repeatedly refused to grant Germany's military contingent to the UN mission in the country the necessary overflight rights for troop rotation.
Berlin suspended its military mission in Mali last month amid a similar dispute with Bamako over airspace, halting transport flights and reconnaissance operations.
The Bundeswehr was ultimately granted the necessary authorizations for the first half of September, but the permits were not extended upon their expiry on Friday, according to Operations Command.
Tensions have risen between Mali's military rulers and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission (MINUSMA), a peacekeeping force established to boost security after the Tuareg Rebellion of 2012, an early stage of the ongoing armed conflict in the country.
Mali, which has seen three military coups since 2012, has been led since the army's most recent seizure of power last year by a transitional military government that is believed to enjoy close ties to Russia.