Bamako

Boubacar Sadek is believed to be the last remaining master calligrapher in Mali. He fled Timbuktu with rare documents. He now makes a living in the capital Bamako. Laura Lynch reports for the CBC and The World.

Turmoil continues to grip Mali, weeks after French forces liberated the north of the country from Islamist rebels. Friday, the first suicide bombing took place in Gao. Anchor Marco Werman speaks with Lydia Polgreen of The New York Times in Bamako.

Fighting is flaring around the Mali city of Gao, despite reports that rebels had ceded the territory to incoming French troops. CBC reporter Laura Lynch just returned from Gao. She tells host Marco Werman that local residents want to French to stay put.

Correspondent Laura Lynch in Mali describes the time she’s just spent with a French army convoy on the road to Gao, Mali. Islamists extremists have been pushed out of Gao, but there are still dangers on the road.

Human rights groups say what appears to be a successful campaign in northern Mali has come at great cost to the country. Laura Lynch reports from Bamako.