Group of French-speaking countries suspends Mali after coup

Mali has been suspended from a global body of French-speaking countries after a military junta overthrew West African country's democratically elected president.

permanent council of International Organization of Francophonie decided on suspension after holding an emergency meeting to discuss situation in Mali. organization will send a high-level delegation to Mali's capital, Bamako, in coming days to evaluate situation, it said in a statement.

It pledged to continue cooperation “that directly benefits civilian population” and called for release of deposed President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and or officials arrested by coup leers on Aug. 18. Francophonie group also called for immediate creation of a civilian-run transitional government.

decision by French-speaking body follows suspension of Mali from 15-nation West African regional bloc ECOWAS. regional group also threatened sanctions. It held unsuccessful talks with military junta in an attempt to get it to agree to immediately return Mali to civilian rule.

While international community has been pressing for a quick return to civilian rule, military junta w running Mali is seeking to prolong its rule until 2023. military officers w in charge insisted on Monday that Keita h resigned of his own free will and was t overthrown, and thousands of people rallied last week in support of new leers.

African countries and wider international community have expressed fears that Mali's upheaval could allow Islamic extremists to extend ir reach. Mali has been fighting against Islamic extremists with heavy international support for more than seven years, and jihists have previously used power vacuums in country to expand ir territory.