Top of the Morning: Malians Go to the Polls in Runoff Election

Top stories from DAWNS Digest

Malians Go to the Polls in Presidential Runoff

Malians voted once again in the run-off elections for the president. The nation’s former PM is considered to be the frontrunner. “Poll workers in Mali began counting votes in Sunday’s high stakes presidential runoff, with former Prime Minister Ibrahim Boubacar Keita tipped to claim the difficult job of stabilizing the West African nation after more than a year of turmoil. The winner of the vote will be able to draw on more than $4 billion in foreign aid promised to rebuild the country after a French-led military intervention in January routed al Qaeda-linked rebels occupying the desert north.” (Reuters http://reut.rs/15rRitb)

Egypt Military Vows to Violently Clear Protests

 We can probably expect some heavy clashes soon. ”Supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi fortified their two Cairo sit-in sites as Egyptian security officials said their forces will move against the entrenched protest camps within 24 hours — perhaps as early as daybreak Monday. At the main sit-in, vendors said they have sold hundreds of gas masks, goggles and gloves to protesters readying for police tear gas. Three waist-high barriers of concrete and wood have been built against armored vehicles.” (ABC http://abcn.ws/15rRRDn)