FYI, it's not just the legion that is involved.

"On Friday, al-Qaida-allied fighters were forced to pull back under relentless French air strikes and the town of Hombori, about 100miles southwest of Gao, was recaptured."

French should clean up well by complete carpet bombings as in 1991 Iraqi war..

There should be no place in Mali or near it for the withdrawing Islamists even to hide.

Hello folks, listen to the Monday morning warmongers spouting battlefield strategy as if they have ever been or would ever be caught dead (pun intended) in a war zone. They probably think France is there to prosecute the "war on terror".

Mali is the 3rd largest gold producing country in Africa. If their biggest export was lettuce do you think France would be there?

Germany has requested that France return 374 tons of gold that they have been storing for them. The problem is that France doesn't have it. France has told Germany that it will take 7 years for them to return their gold. So how long do you think France will be in Mali? I'm guessing around seven years.

WTG France!!!

☺

Islamist alliance that includes AQIM, the north African franchise of al-Qaida.

Franchise????? the writer makes it sound like these Islamic barbarians are running a McDonalds.

They are. Wallmart, McDonalds etc. All at little peoples expense. Conquer the World....and the race is on.

Capitalists, Islamists, Bankers, Wall Street, Dictators all.

Even though I hate war, if it's inevitable and unavoidable, I'm glad to see France put their foot down and actually take action rather than stand behind a podium and give a speech about what "should" be done and what do we do now.

Since they've been so quiet lately, I wasn't sure if they really had it in them.

To crush your enemy

See them driven before you.

And to hear the lamination of their women

Let's see, France supports Al Qaeda in Libya and Syria so they must be good Al Qaeda, right? But France is fighting them in Afghansitatn and Mali so those are bad Al Qaeda, right? I'm so confused! It's hard following this war on terror without a program.

SEVEN 341804....exactly right...i don't like them being given names other than SCUM SUCKERS, BOTTOM FEEDERS, MURDERERS, LIERS, LYERS, LAIRS...anything other than one of those seems to give them some sort of credibility...the press is good at that, but they are getting paid by the word not the truth...reminds me of that young girl getting shot for thalking of FREEDOM...the M.B. IS OF THE SAME mentality...ANTI-CHRIST...they are coming this way soon.....GOT BULLETS...

Yeah, like Christianity is any different. Look at the Caribbean Islands, once inhabited by thriving populations of native american tribes. Then the Europeans arrived to "Christianize" them. Where are they now. All gone.

Look at the bible, and how glorifies the slaughter of the people of Jericho, down to the smallest child, because God said it was the righteous thing to do.

Islam is just a religion, one that has stood at times for tolerance, and at other times for intolerance. This is the same of Christianity, Judaism and every other faith on the planet.

Idiots will always talk of the past when they cannot make a valid point in the present. Intelligence is finite while stupidity is boundless. People at one time were all completely convinced the world was flat. Guess what?

There are plenty of things in this world that are true whether you choose to believe them or not.

"With the gift of intelligence often comes the great epiphany that you may be completely wrong about your beliefs."

"Once you have placed a label on the box you have constructed from your beliefs, you cease to possess the ability to perceive beyond its constraints."

Followers and supporters of Islamic cult are still in seventh century desert days of hating and killing.

While most religions are coming slowly to 21st century, Islam has marched backwards to seventh century desert days.

If seventh century Islamists get non-Muslims, they hate and kill them.

If they don't get non-Muslims, they kill other sect/tribe people.

Just examine cases of Syria, Pakistan, Mali (Islamists were on hating and killing spree of "love" and "peace" dancing Sufis), Iraq, and other places.

Assad is one of the best ME ruler. Still Sunni Syrian rebels and their MB, al-Qaida want Assad's and his supporters' blood!

Can any other religious group beat records of Islamic extremists right in 21st century?

Main culprits and criminals of one-way traffic invention, promotion and export of Islamic extremists are: Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Islamic extremists are on rampage all over the world.

For world peace and economic stability (especially oil prices stability), we need to wipe out Saudi Arabia and Pakistan from the map.

Well, Seven, it was you which cited passages in the Koran, to which I responded with passages from the Bible, equally abhorrent to civilized people, yet revered, or at least accepted by adherents of two major religions. You ignore such parts of the Bible, yet run to find similar incidents in the Koran.

I cannot tell if that is the mark of idiocy or of bigotry. Probably, it is a blending of both, which is the most potent preventive of true thought.

I pointed out the past, because the past shows the cultural heritage of Islam, which is not a history of pure religious intolerance.

The rest of your post is a series truisms, which while valid in themselves prove nothing in this context, except that you have isolated your thought process against any new ideas.

For world peace and economic stability (especially oil prices stability), we need to wipe out Saudi Arabia and Pakistan from the map.

I thought it was Judaism which needed eradication.

Oh, my bad. That was Hitler's belief. I get the credos of intolerant, racial, religious and ethnic bigots mixed up sometimes.

In the islam box and obviously and failed to see the point. We are talking about today. Did you take a short yellow bus to school? Let me spell that out for you T O D A Y. You know, things going on in the world today. Honor killings, rape, be-headings, bodily mutilations, subjugation of women and their rights as human beings, wanton murder, hostage taking, suicide bombings and even killing their own infected club members. All in the name of islam and the pedophile prophet muhammed. allah be praised! Give me a freaking break! Please feel free to comment again on my post and side-step any of my observations. Are you a politician?

Seven: You rightly replied those comparing apples and oranges and giving spins, excuses and lies for Islamists' barbarism.

Followers of Islamic cult have beaten Hitler's record hollow long time back, imagine that Islamists are better.

Can anyone control fantasies while living in one's own hell holes?

It is funny, but axiomatic, that idiots seldom realize just how stupid they truly are. How can they?

Actually, in the following words, you do reference the past as well:

These islamists worship an animal who raped a 7 year old, mutilated and beheaded people for not converting to his evil ideals and raped the widow of a man he killed on the same day. (documented in the koran) How can civilized humanity have a logical interaction with people who deem this a phophet?

By the above words, you indict all of modern day Islam based upon the happenings centuries ago, but Christian misdoings, which should be equally repellant, you seem unable to see or remember.

But leave that aside. Today, Muslim countries are not the only locations where violence is occurring. In Mexico, a virtual war is raging over control of the drug trade. In equatorial Africa countries such as the Congo, Angola and Zimbabwe, are awash in violence which has nothing to do with the Islamic religion. In recent times we have seen religious cleansing of Muslims by Christians in Armenia, and of Muslims by Buddhists in Myamar. We also have the recent incidents of ethnic cleansing of Muslim Bosnians by Christian Serbs.

But you see only Muslim violence, and it is not all in the name of Islam and the prophet. You also ignore Islamic countries such as Turkey which exist under a secular, democratic government and are allies of ours in NATO.

In short, you see only what you wish to see.

Give me a freaking break!

Sorry, I cannot. Nature or God made you as you are. I cannot increment your intelligence, or your propensity for honest analysis.

Mali is the classical example where Islamic extremists started killing moderate Sufi sect Muslims.

In Pakistan, minority sect Shiites, Sufis and Ahmedias mosques are bombed on Fridays and later hospitals to kill more of those injured.

Followers of Islamic cult, especially House of Saud and other Sunni ME rulers inspired and funded Sunni Islamic radicals and militants (al-Qaida, Salaffi, Wahhabi, MB, Taliban and other label ones), are fast marching backwards to their seventh century desert tribal days.

They are indulging in rapings, lootings, killings and genocides of non-Muslims (Darfur, S. Sudan, Nigeria and spreading like wild fire in many regions and Muslims (Libya, Yemen, Mali, Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, Afghanistan and other places).

In Egypt, the Sunni extremists with labels like Salaffi and MB (Muslim Bloodhounds) are opening up new chapters of Islamic bigotry. Morsi is just a front for them.

Just watch the fate of sane Muslims, minority sect/tribe people, Christians, women and Israel as the time goes by.

Even in Syria, if Assad is overthrown by Sunni Islamic religious Nazis like al-Qaida, MB, the conditions of Christians will be unbearable just like Iraq.

Pakis and Sunni rulers of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE and other Sunni Arab League nations are responsible for 80 percent of world problems including economic ones.

Examine the devastations with Iraqi wars and now sanctions on Iranian oil and the resultant oil price manipulations.

They are making the lives of their own people also miserable by their Islamic religious madness to the intolerable levels.

dman

In Mexico, a virtual war is raging over control of the drug trade.

True, but the drug cartels are just entrepreneurs providing dope to all the idiot drug addicts who cannot handle life. Yes they are violent and evil........but the real blame is upon the dope users who cause the violence. The dope users go away, so do the drug cartels and their associates.

dman - you forgot to add the Protestant and Catholic conflict in Ireland and Great Britain to your list.....well said.

Seven - did you read dman's post?

dman.........again, I don't think I have seen better side-stepping on Dancing With The Stars. You must have gone to school with Obama.

I just love reading the posts about my religion is better than your religion and so forth and so on......... Then of course you always find some self proclaimed enlightened individual like Seven-341804 that feels that for absolutely no reason they must inject President Obama into the argument.

I think I'll move to a different news vine, maybe I'll get lucky and find a conversation not originating from the mindless and mean spirited right wing gene pool.

You have the wrong idea about Mohammed and how Islam started (my idea is they needed something to unite Arabs to compete with Chistianity & the people of the Book who disinherited them) But its really turned into a killing Machine. Worse than Old Christianity, which was pretty bad. At least Judeaism doesn't CONVERT. Doesn't say, Do what we say or Die. Islam has to be the worst because it takes advantage of ordinary people (not animals) but people who wish there was a good God and become twisted into thinking they must die for this good force. (I think a good force would want us to LIVE for it but..) Islam is just POLITICAL now. Even Hamas in Gaza has proclaimed the land, Not for Palistineans (since there were Armenian, Jewish, Druze, Nomads etc in Palestine) BUT for the Islamic Union. Can you believe that? They get America all riled about the poor Palestineans but steal the land for Islam and force all Gaza into Sharia.

Every country should put a stop to it...in Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Myanmar, Africa, South America. I started with a very tolerant attitude but clear observation shows me otherwise. I can't be tolerant of anything that trie to take control and dictate. Not NeoNazi's, Vulture Capitalists, Tea Parties, none of them.

There is plenty of space in this world for different religions. But the ones that need to be forced by beheadings and amputations have no place.

dman.........again, I don't think I have seen better side-stepping on Dancing With The Stars. You must have gone to school with Obama.

Oooohhhh! What a scathing retort. Somebody call the burn unit.

Democratic, Republican, Christian, Muslim, Capitalist, Socialist, etc, it doesn't matter. Fundamentalism is wrong, "fundmentally" on most all levels.

Even the Republicans tried to bring Religion in. That really turned me off to them and made them look like Fascist Religious Dictators. Cheap and ignorant. (I guess thats what they think of us)

The Westboro church has, what, 50 members? How many radical Muslims are there in the world? 100s of Millions. that's the problem.

Problems in France, Europe, our deep debts and other neck deep problems are just impact of Iraqi wars and oil price manipulations.

Mali is just a diversion for France and some nations. When one has problems at home, go to war!

Just like before each Iraqi wars, autocratic, highly corrupt and despotic bigoted Sunnis of versions belonging to Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Kuwaiti and Sunni oil rich nations are stage managing their dances and actions through oil companies, extremist Jewish lobbys and their puppets in the US, Britain, EU and other nations on Syria and Iran.

In Syria, Syrian rebels are backed by a-Qaida and MB.

In Egypt, Islamic fundamentalist Morsi is a front cover for the Sunni Islamic extremist Salaffi, MB and others.

With sanctions on Iranian oil, oil prices which was around $40 in 2009 has crossed $110 now.

If Iraqi wars gave us PIIGS, there will more nations added to PIIGS with the current high oil prices and probably intervention in Iran.

IRAQ WARS

Net results of Saudi, Kuwait, UAE, oil companies and their lobbyists directed 1991 and 2003 Iraqi wars are

WINNERS

1. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE and other rich ME sharks became richer by manipulating oil prices too high.

2. Oil companies and their lobbyists also benefitted. Oil prices, which were hardly $30 a barrel before 1991, shot up to $140 a barrel.

3. Since 2003, future traders, rating agencies, Wall Street and oil companies and their lobbyists transferred five trillion dollars from oil importing countries to oil exporting nations.

4. Rich Sunni ME sharks (Saudi Arabia in particular) funded Salaffi and Wahhabi mosques and Islamic radicals and terrorists all over the world. These Sunni Islamic radicals and terrorists are rampaging all over the world. World’s 80 percent of problems are due to them.

LOSERS

1. General US and European nations’ public. There have been high unemployment, cut in welfare measures, housing market collapse and more miseries. Since 2001, US spent three trillion dollars on Iraq and Afghan wars. Did the Saudis and co foot the bill?

2. Poor soldiers killed and injured and their families. In Iraq and Afghan wars 6300 soldiers were killed and 40000 injured.

3. High budget deficits and heavier borrowing. Many nations (PIIGS) and people are on line to bankruptcy!

4. Iraq will plunge into bloody sectarian civil wars leading to the creation of Shiastan, Sunnistan and Kurdistan. Here the losses are of Iraqis.

If this is all about colonialism, why are Malian citizens welcoming French intervention? How would France have orchestrated a coup/takeover by Islamic militants?

I don't believe its about colonialism. There is a big surge for Islam to take over wherever they can, whether sunni, shiite whatever and Africans don't want to be Islamic. Even most Palestinians in Gaza don't want to be forced into Islam and Sharia but. They people still speak in whispers because their families will suffer if they get heard. I am so angry at the UN for what they don't know. Its too late now. Palestine has been declared for Islam and NOT Palestineans.

Dee Ten...you're a moron...Let's start with one example...the French intervention in Zaire 1978. The 2 REP parachutes into the eastern province of Shaba to liberate 2,300 Europeans and 100,000 locals. In five days of fighting they clear the town, rescue the Europeans and restore control of Kolwezi back to Zaire. But the interesting thing is that they had done the same thing twice before, about ten years apart.

The French have intervened in Africia so many times (Chad, Liberia, Ivory Coast, etc., etc.,) and then turned things back over to the government that it's hard to keep track of all the successes they've had.

If you want to insist on thinking what you want...go ahead, you've got a right to be stupid and you can exercise being stupid to your heart's content, but don't BS the rest of us. Get your facts straight...your opinion is yours to screw up, but history is history.

Viva La France!

Now this is how you fight low life pig a$$ jihadists. No mercy and accept no surrender.

Sorry RT, this is what I wanted to say:

the French intervention in Zaire 1978

Excellent historic fact that many of Jimmy Carters supporters would like to forget.

The president of Zaire asked Carter for help when terrorists attacked a western mining operation in Zaire. The terrorists murder innocent civilian Zairian as well as European and American men, women and children. Cater sent the 82nd Airborne in only to sit in their aircraft because Cater (a useless waste of a president) did not have the balls to order an attack (we all remember his impotence in 1979 dealing with Iran). Thank God the French foreign Legion came in to clean up these vermin.

traditional foreign forces lose to local guerrilla fighters every time...

Not necessarily true. Please read the history of US Army Special Forces in Vietnam. They created their own army that was successful in reducing the effectiveness of the Viet Cong. probably why by 1970 the Pentagon wanted them out............they were too effective.

You just totally missed the fact that these islamists are not local. The local population absolutely hates them.

Elvis,

1978 Zairian crisis took place just a few years after the disastrous war in Vietnam. Back then no president would have committed troops to some conflict in Africa.

Besides, this part of Africa was the French and Belgian sphere of influence.

Rafal W...how wrong you are. Were it not for "faster than anyone thought" action by the French, the 82nd Airborne was alerted and loaded aboard aircraft to go to Zaire. Jimmy Carter came close to making a huge mistake, but luckily the French and Belgians got their act together (separately I might add) in time to avoid having to put the 82nd Abn in. American aircraft were used to move troops and the French jumped into Kolwezi using American T-10 parachutes. But if the French had waited 24 hours to commit....

@ Wolfpack2000 : I am french and your ignorant, bigoted, uneducated rant makes you seem like the imbecile you are !! get your facts straight, and kiss my gallic behind, espece de merde !!

I hope malian civilians don't suffer too much, but french troops are getting rid of islamist scum, at the request of the malian government, and that alone is good news for the civilized world.

chris - unfortunately people like Wolf lives amongst us and breed but the bright side is their brains are are becoming less useful and soon, hopefully, they will also stop breeding.

Good to see that some intelligent life is now commenting on this topic here, replacing tired cliches and shopworn pessimism with facts and support for the fight against radical Islam (a fight that we did not start by the way).

God is imaginary. This explains the multitude of religions and mystic practices to worship "God". In all situations other than god/religion, people who have imaginary friends, talk to them, and in some cases hear them, would be considered crazy. Religion is somehow the acceptable delusion.

Christianity is only better than most other religions (Islam, Judaism, etc.) because its prophet("God") taught mostly tolerance and peace. Jesus, as described in the Bible, did not fight, kill, or stone anyone. However, Christianity has had and still has dangerous extremists.

All extremists are dangerous and need to be confronted.

Al - don't you get tired of the same old bull c, it is like talking on the phone with no one on the other end. The light is on but no one is home.

you are being overly harsh. French make good vine and food and they kick butt when USA dont.

The French make very good wine, but unfortunately they tend to drink the best and export the not quite so good. The French make some other pretty good stuff. In the Napoleonic days, the French built the best frigates. The desire of every English captain was to capture a French frigate. Similarly in 1940, the British were obsessed with destroying the French fleet at Mers el Kebir. They managed to only destroy one of the four French battleships. The Strasbourg escaped the trap and the three British battleships (including the 31 knot Hood). The Strasbourg fought off aircraft from the Ark Royal and escaped to France. (That was a much better result than that of the famed Bismark which was crippled by aircraft from the Ark Royal in 1941.) Remember that it was France in 732, under Charles the Hammer, that decisively defeated the Muslims at the Battle of Tours.

And F you, Ron-bunchofnumbers. What a stupid post !! The french created those terrorists ? Woaw, you are amazing...in your ignorance. What have the french done to you ? You are a tool, LOL

Yeah, that post by Ron was the ignorant thing I've seen here on the vine in about a week, and that's no small feat in itself!

And you cannot spell, you freaking idiot. Your post makes no sense. A "crocked" tower ? I think you are referring to Pisa, in Italy. And that would be "crooked". You seem to have the maturity and grammar of a 5-year old, why bother commenting ? Just because you hate the french ? You are pathetic.

Apparently he thinks that the leaning tower of Pisa is in France too. What an idiot in every aspect.

Ron. God blesses all those who do not know of any better, are you surely are one of them. I dont know what makes you hate the french so much. Maybe you should get out of your cabin and breath some fresh mountain are.

and bomb and kill all Islamists without any mercy.

Islamists don't bother when they kill and do shootings and suicide bombings whether one is a child, woman, innocent or other big words.

They bomb their minority sect mosques while Muslims are praying and they bomb the hospitals to kill more.

Why should we care?

Just bomb the hell out of Islamists all over the world for our own survival.