Malick Diaw

Malick Diaw
Diaw in 2023
Vice President of Mali
In office
19 August 2020 – 25 September 2020
PresidentAssimi Goïta
Prime MinisterVacant
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byAssimi Goïta
President of National Transitional Council of Mali [fr]
Assumed office
5 December 2020
PresidentBah Ndaw
Prime MinisterMoctar Ouane
Preceded byOffice established
Personal details
Bornc. 1979 (age 44–45)
Ségou, Mali
Alma materJoint Military School in Koulikoro
Prytanée militaire de Kati
Military service
Allegiance Mali
Branch/serviceMalian Armed Forces
UnitAutonomous Special Forces Battalion
Battles/warsMali War

Malick Diaw is a Malian soldier and politician. The colonel was one of the leaders of the Military Junta that organized the 2020 Malian coup d'état and a member of the National Committee for the Salvation of the People.[1] On December 5, 2020, he was elected president of the National Transitional Council of Mali [fr], the de facto Malian legislative body.[2]

Biography

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Colonel Malick Diaw was a student at the Prytanée militaire de Kati [fr] then joined the Joint Military School in Koulikoro in 1998.[3] He became deputy director of the Prytanée militaire de Kati [fr] at the time of the coup.[4] He was also Subjete of the General Staff of the National Guard in the 3rd Military Region of Kati.[4]

As an artillery officer, he participated in the Mali War between 2013 and 2017.[3]

He was one of the soldiers present at the massive rally to celebrate the fall of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta[5] and is considered one of the masterminds of the 2020 Malian coup d'état that overthrew the president. He became second in command of the Military Junta led by Assimi Goïta, interim vice president in the transition of Mali. He also played a key role in negotiations with the Economic Community of West African States to lift sanctions in October.[1][2]

Diaw was elected president of the National Transitional Council of Mali [fr] with 111 votes in favor and 7 abstentions, in a body in which the military occupies 22 of the 121 seats.[5]

International Sanctions

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In February of 2022, Colonel Diaw was placed on the EU's sanctions list by the EU Council. The decision was motivated by Diaw's direct and active role in the continued obstruction of Mali's transition to democracy.[6][7]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Mali's Malick Diaw to head National Transition Council". BBC News. 5 December 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  2. ^ a b "Au Mali, le colonel Malick Diaw élu à la tête du Conseil national de transition" (in French). France 24. 5 December 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  3. ^ a b Aïssatou Diallo (9 December 2020). "Mali : ce qu'il faut savoir sur Malick Diaw, pièce maîtresse de la junte à la tête du CNT" (in French). Jeune Afrique. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Mali Coup d'État: The soldiers who brought down IBK". The Africa Report. 20 August 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  5. ^ a b "Mali's interim legislature elects Malick Diaw as president". Africanews. 5 December 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  6. ^ "EU imposes sanctions on senior Mali officials". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-10-22.
  7. ^ "COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING REGULATION (EU) 2022/2436 of 12 December 2022 implementing Article 12(2) of Regulation (EU) 2017/1770 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Mali".