Be wary of backlash from Mali - Mahama

President John Dramani Mahama has called on the nation's Muslim leaders to be wary of any persons attempting to carry out any acts of violence following the country's decision to participate in the peace efforts in Mali.

According to him, although the Ghanaian soldiers will not be directly involved in the move to flush out the rebels in Mali, the probability of a backlash from some of the rebels in the region remains high.

“Ghana has sent an engineering company. We are not directly involved in combat but our company is going to be involved in construction of barracks, bridges, open up roads and setting up field hospitals so that when soldiers or the civilian population are injured they can have access to medical facilities.”

He continued: “Even though we are not directly involved in combat, we should still be careful that we can have a backlash from those who are involved in the fighting in Mali.”

“Mali is a sister African country and we must help to restore its sovereignty and that is why Ghana has become involved in that process.”

Ghana currently has 120 troops in Mali as part of its contribution to the ECOWAS force. The troops, who were transported along with vehicles and equipment, were from Ghana's Engineering Company 1 and will build accommodation for the African-led International Support Mission to Mali (AFISMA) as well as supporting engineering projects.

The President made the comments when various Muslim groups, led by the Chief Imam, paid a courtesy call on him to congratulate and wish him well in his role as President.