Air France postpones resumption of its flights to Mali

Air France announced the postponement until further notice of the resumption of its flights to Mali, after the government of this country declared on Wednesday that it had not yet given authorization for their restart.

Air France said on Tuesday it would resume flights to and from Mali’s capital Bamako on Oct. 13, having suspended them in August due to regional instability.

Mali’s transport ministry said in a statement that it was examining the airline’s request to resume and that flights remained suspended in the meantime, Reuters reported.

“The minister recalls that flights were unilaterally suspended by the company, without properly informing the authorities and customers in advance,” the statement said, adding that it was committed to “defending Mali’s sovereignty”.