France bombs Islamists in north Mali

French special forces bomb positions held by Islamist militants in northern Mali, as part of its efforts to combat al-Qaeda in the region.
The BBC reports:
The U.N. has said al-Qaeda militants were active in the area. Last month Timbuktu airport came under rocket attack. France intervened in Mali in January last year to try to drive out al-Qaeda-linked groups, which had taken over the north of the country.
Last month the French government said it was setting up a new military operation to stop the emergence of jihadist groups in the Sahel region of Africa. Both ethnic Tuareg separatists and al-Qaeda-linked militants are operating in northern Mali.
Meanwhile, Malian leader Ibrahim Boubacar Keita tells Deutsche Welle that the country will "never be a caliphate":
Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita is confident that his government and the rebels in the north will achieve sustainable peace in the near future. Rebels have taken up the struggle again and made territorial gains.
President Keita said his government was committed to negotiating a peaceful solution with Tuareg separatists after rebels and Al-Qaeda-linked militants overran much of the north in 2012.