In February 2013, thousands lined up along the main road in the historic Malian city of Timbuktu to give a heroic welcome to France’s President Francois Hollande. He was visiting the city after French forces had pushed back armed groups that had captured swaths of Mali and were marching towards the capital, Bamako.
Dancing and waving French flags, locals chanted “Vive la France” as Hollande waved back at them. Even the muezzin of the 14-century mud mosque of Djinguereber, who recites the call to prayer five times a day, flaunted a scarf in the colours of the French flag as he shouted “Vive Hollande”. It was a joyful day in Mali.
