The Agacher Strip War ( French: ''Guerre de la Bande d’Agacher'') or Christmas War (French: ''Guerre de Noël'') was a war fought by

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to ...

and

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...

over a strip of land along the border in northern Burkina Faso from 25 to 30 December 1985. The war ended in a ceasefire. The Agacher Strip had been subject to a

border dispute A territorial dispute or boundary dispute is a disagreement over the possession or control of land between two or more political entities. Context and definitions Territorial disputes are often related to the possession of natural resources s ...

between Mali and Burkina Faso since the 1960s. Following armed clashes in 1974, both countries agreed to mediation to resolve their differences. Progress on a solution stalled, and in 1983 Burkinabé President

Thomas Sankara Thomas Isidore Noël Sankara (; 21 December 1949 – 15 October 1987) was a Burkinabé military officer, Marxist–Leninist revolutionary, and Pan-Africanist, who served as President of Burkina Faso from his coup in 1983 to his deposition a ...

and Malian President

Moussa Traoré Moussa Traoré (25 September 1936 – 15 September 2020) was a Malian soldier, politician, and dictator who was President of Mali from 1968 to 1991. As a Lieutenant, he led the military ousting of President Modibo Keïta in 1968. Thereafter he ...

decided to have the border dispute settled by the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...

and subsequently petitioned the body to resolve the issue. In 1985 tensions rose between the Burkinabé and Malian governments as Sankara called for a revolution in Mali while Traoré's regime struggled to manage social unrest. After Burkinabé officials conducted a census in disputed border communities, Malian forces launched an offensive on 25 December with aircraft and tanks. Overwhelmed by Mali's superior firepower, Burkinabé forces lost control of the Agacher border communities and resorted to

guerrilla tactics Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hit-and-run ta ...

to stall Malian tanks. Mali subsequently occupied most of the Agacher Strip, while both countries conducted raids on each other's locales. A ceasefire was reached on 30 December, and in early 1986 successful mediation by West African countries resulted in an agreement from Sankara and Traoré to avoid further hostilities. The relatively poor performance of Burkina Faso during the war damaged the credibility of its revolutionary rulers and led them to project a more moderate international image. In Mali, the war added to the country's economic difficulties but boosted the popularity of Traoré's struggling regime. The International Court of Justice later ruled the Agacher Strip to be split among the two countries, a settlement which both accepted.

Background and border dispute

In 1919 France reorganised its colonial administration in French West Africa and created the new colony of Upper Volta, splitting it off of

Upper Senegal and Niger Upper Senegal and Niger () was a colony in French West Africa, created on 21 October 1904 from colonial Senegambia and Niger by the decree "For the Reorganisation of the general government of French West Africa". At its creation, the "Colony o ...

. The colony was abolished in 1932 and merged with surrounding territories until France decided to restore it in 1947. The

Republic of Upper Volta The Republic of Upper Volta (french: République de Haute-Volta) was a landlocked West African country established on 11 December 1958 as a self-governing colony within the French Community. Before becoming autonomous, it had been part of the ...

and the Republic of

were granted independence in 1960. In north-eastern Upper Volta an approximately portion of land bordered to the north by Mali and

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesBéli River was subject to a territorial dispute. The border in the area—known as the Agacher Strip—was drawn using old French maps but never fully demarcated as French colonial ordinances had not carefully delineated the frontier. Upper Volta relied on colonial borders to stake its territorial claims; maps dating from 1920 showed several border communities within the colony of Upper Volta. Mali relied on ethnic arguments; Malian people had established several communities in the region to take advantage of grazing land. The Agacher was also rumoured to possess valuable

manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...

deposits, though there was little evidence these actually existed. The lack of full demarcation first led to a dispute among riverine peoples along the Béli in 1961. In 1968 a joint Upper Volta-Mali commission was established in an attempt to reach an agreement, but the group did not make any progress. A period of drought and the ensuing population displacement in the region, further escalated tensions. In 1974 a brief armed conflict broke out between the two countries over the border dispute. In response, the

Organization of African Unity The Organisation of African Unity (OAU; french: Organisation de l'unité africaine, OUA) was an intergovernmental organization established on 25 May 1963 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 32 signatory governments. One of the main heads for OAU's ...

created a mediation commission to resolve the disagreement and provide for an independent, neutral demarcation of the border. Both the Malian and Upper Voltan governments declared that they would not use armed force to end the dispute. In 1977 Upper Volta, Mali, and several other francophone West African states signed a mutual

defence pact A defense pact (or defence pact in Commonwealth spelling) is a type of treaty or military alliance in which the signatories promise to support each other militarily and to defend each other.Volker Krause, J. David Singer "Minor Powers, Allianc ...

, the ''Non-Aggression and Defense Aid Agreement'' (ANAD). By 1983 Upper Volta and Mali were in disagreement about the work of the Organization of African Unity commission. On 4 August Captain

and other military officers launched a coup in Upper Volta. Sankara became president and the officers established the Conseil National de la Revolution (CNR) to rule the country in a left-leaning, revolutionary fashion. He personally disliked Malian President

, who had taken power by deposing

Modibo Keïta Modibo Keïta (4 June 1915 – 16 May 1977) was the first President of Mali (1960–1968) and the Prime Minister of the Mali Federation. He espoused a form of African socialism. Youth Keïta was born in Bamako-Coura, a neighborhood of Ba ...

's left-leaning regime. On 17 September 1983 Sankara, a veteran of the 1974 border clashes, visited Mali and met with Traoré. With Algerian mediation, the two agreed to have the border dispute settled by the

(ICJ) and subsequently petitioned the body to resolve the issue. At the same time a new joint commission for bilateral cooperation was established, and the following month Upper Volta lifted its veto to allow Mali to join the

West African Economic and Monetary Union The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as in French and Portuguese) is a regional political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa. Collectively, these countries comprise an area of , and in ...

as a conciliatory measure. In August 1984 the CNR changed the name of Upper Volta to

. On 3 April 1985 the ICJ began examining the border dispute.

Prelude

Low rainfall in Mali created a severe drought in 1984, forcing Malian ranchers to drive their cattle south into northern Burkina Faso in search of water and adequate grazing land. This led to conflict with local crop farmers. In July 1985 Burkina Faso declared the Malian secretary general of the Economic Community of West Africa, Drissa Keita, a '' persona non grata'' after he criticised Sankara's regime. In September Sankara delivered a speech in which he called for a revolution in Mali. Malian leaders were particularly sensitive to the inflammatory rhetoric, as their country was experiencing social unrest. Around the same time Sankara and other key figures in the CNR became convinced that Traoré was harbouring opposition to the Burkinabé regime in

Bamako Bamako ( bm, ߓߡߊ߬ߞߐ߬ ''Bàmakɔ̌'', ff, 𞤄𞤢𞤥𞤢𞤳𞤮 ''Bamako'') is the capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2009 population of 1,810,366 and an estimated 2022 population of 2.81 million. It is located on the Niger Rive ...

and plotting to provoke a border war which would be used to support a counterrevolution. In October Burkina Faso and Mali filed their first

briefs Briefs (or a brief) are a type of short, form-fitting underwear and swimwear, as opposed to styles where material extends down the thighs. Briefs have various different styles, usually with a waistband attached to fabric that runs along the pe ...

with the ICJ concerning the boundary dispute. Tensions at the border first began to rise on 24 November when one Burkinabé national killed another near the border in

Soum Province Soum is one of the 45 provinces of Burkina Faso, located in its Sahel Region. Its capital is Djibo. Departments Soum is divided into 9 departments: See also *Regions of Burkina Faso *Provinces of Burkina Faso *Departments of Burkina Faso The ...

. Malian police crossed the boundary to arrest the murderer and also detained several members of a local Committee for the Defense of the Revolution who were preparing a tribunal. Three days later Malian police entered Kounia to "restore order". Burkina Faso made diplomatic representations on the incidents to Mali, but was given no formal response. At the beginning of December Burkina Faso informed Mali and other surrounding countries that it was conducting its decennial national census from 10 to 20 December. On 14 December military personnel entered the Agacher to assist with the census. Mali accused the military authorities of pressuring Malian citizens in the border villages of Dionouga, Sebba, Kounia, and Douna to register with the census, a charge which Burkina Faso disputed. Dionouga, Sebba, and Kounia lay on the Burkinabé side of the disputed area, while Douna was under Malian jurisdiction. In Dionouga Malian nationals threw stones at the Burkinabé census personnel. In response, a few Burkina Faso Armed Forces units were sent into the three Burkinabé-administered villages. Malian police confronted the military personnel and, in an attempt to reduce tensions, ANAD dispatched a delegation to Bamako and

Ouagadougou Ouagadougou ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic centre of the nation. It is also the country's largest city, with a population of 2,415,266 in 2019. The city's ...

to mediate. President of Algeria

Chadli Bendjedid Chadli Bendjedid ( ar, الشاذلي بن جديد; ALA-LC: ''ash-Shādhilī bin Jadīd''; 14 April 1929 – 6 October 2012) was the third President of Algeria and an Algerian Nationalist. His presidential term of office ran from 9 February 19 ...

also contacted Sankara and Traoré to encourage a peaceful resolution. At the request of ANAD members, Burkina Faso announced the withdrawal of all military personnel from the disputed region. Not all troops were withdrawn before hostilities broke out. Despite the declared withdrawal, a "war of the communiques" ensued as Burkinabé and Malian authorities exchanged hostile messages with one another. The Malian government accused Burkina Faso of harassing local customary chiefs and forcing its nationals to accept Burkinabé identity cards. During the same time period the Malian Government was threatened with a national strike by educators over delays in compensation. Under pressure from labour unions and student activists, the government contravened its previous position—that there were no funds for wages—and paid the teachers. Feeling threatened by Sankara, Traoré began preparing Mali for hostilities with Burkina Faso. Three ''Groupements Opérationnels Tactiques'' were formed to attack the country: one in the north led by Army Chief of Staff Colonel Kokè Dembéle, one in the center led by

Kafougouna Koné Kafougouna Koné (1944 – 10 March 2017) was a Malian politician, diplomat and military officer. He served as Minister of Defense from 1991 to 1992 during the country's transition to democracy. During the Agacher Strip War of December 1985, Ko ...

, and one in the south led by Souleymane Daffé. The ''groupements'' were to invade Burkina Faso and converge on the city of

Bobo-Dioulasso Bobo-Dioulasso is a city in Burkina Faso with a population of 904,920 (); it is the second-largest city in the country, after Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso's capital. The name means "home of the Bobo-Dioula". The local Bobo-speaking population (r ...

. Once there, they would rally Burkinabé opposition forces to take Ouagadougou and overthrow Sankara. According to an analyses by the United States

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

, it was also hoped that a war would distract the Malian populace from their country's troubled economy. Former Sankara aide Paul Michaud wrote that the Burkinabé president had actually intended to provoke Mali into conflict with the aim of mobilising popular support for his regime. According to him "an official—and reliable—Malian source" had reported that

mobilisation Mobilization is the act of assembling and readying military troops and supplies for war. The word ''mobilization'' was first used in a military context in the 1850s to describe the preparation of the Prussian Army. Mobilization theories and ...

documents dating to 19 December were found on the bodies of fallen Burkinabé soldiers during the ensuing war. On 20 December

Malian Air Force The Mali Air Force is the air force of Mali. History The Mali Air Force (french: Armée de l'air du Mali) was founded in 1961 with French-supplied military aid. This included MH.1521 Broussard utility monoplane followed by two C-47 transports ...

MiG-21 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nickn ...

s and helicopters began patrolling the border.

War

At dawn on 25 December 1985, a day during which most Burkinabé were celebrating

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

, about 150

Malian Army The Malian Armed Forces (french: links=no, Forces Armées Maliennes) consists of the Army (french: Armée de Terre, links=no), Republic of Mali Air Force (french: Force Aérienne de la Republique du Mali, links=no), and National Guard (french: G ...

tanks crossed the frontier and attacked several locations. Malian troops also attempted to envelope Bobo-Dioulasso in a

pincer Pincer may refer to: * Pincers (tool) *Pincer (biology), part of an animal *Pincer ligand In chemistry, a transition metal pincer complex is a type of coordination complex with a pincer ligand. Pincer ligands are chelating agents that binds tig ...

attack. The Burkina Faso Army struggled to repel the offensive in the face of superior Malian firepower and were overwhelmed on the northern front; Malian forces quickly secured the towns of Dionouga, Selba, Kouna, and Douna in the Agacher. The garrison in Dionouga was overwhelmed; 15 Burkinabé soldiers were captured while they slept and the rest were forced to retreat. At about 08:45 two Malian MiG-21s bombed Djibo,

Ouahigouya Ouahigouya is a town in northern Burkina Faso. It is the capital of the Yatenga Province and one of its subdivisions the Ouahigouya Department. It is also the biggest town in the Nord Region. It is the fourth largest city in the country with a ...

and Nassoumbo. The Burkinabé Government in Ougadougou received word of hostilities at about 13:00 and immediately issued mobilisation orders. Various security measures were also imposed across the country, including nighttime blackouts. Burkinabé forces regrouped in the Dionouga area to

counter-attack A counterattack is a tactic employed in response to an attack, with the term originating in "war games". The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy during attack, while the specific objectives typically seek ...

. Captain

Blaise Compaoré Blaise Compaoré (born 3 February 1951)''Profiles of People in Power: The World's Government Leaders'' (2003), page 76–77.

took command of this western front. Under his leadership soldiers split into small groups and employed

against Malian tanks, successfully capturing two. Burkina Faso deployed the

National Police National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries: *Afghanistan: Afghan National Police *Haiti: Haitian National Police *Colombia: National Police of Colombia *Cuba: Cuban National Police *East Timor: National Police of ...

to reinforce the army, which was also joined by some armed Committees for the Defense of the Revolution and militia units. Mali mitigated Burkinabé counterattacks by conducting sorties with its MiG-21s, and Burkina Faso attempted to counter them by launching its sole

MiG-17 The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-17; NATO reporting name: Fresco) is a high-subsonic fighter aircraft produced in the Soviet Union from 1952 and was operated by air forces internationally. The MiG-17 w ...

, though no air-to-air engagements occurred. Burkina Faso retaliated against the bombing of its towns on 26 December by conducting airstrikes on

Sikasso Sikasso ( Bambara: ߛߌߞߊߛߏ tr. Sikaso) is a city in the south of Mali and the capital of the Sikasso Cercle and the Sikasso Region. It is Mali's second largest city with 225,753 residents in the 2009 census. History Sikasso was founded ...

, killing four Malians and injuring four others. Burkinabé forces also raided the Malian town of Zégoua, several hundred kilometres away from the Agacher, claiming to have killed 15 Malian soldiers and destroyed two "military targets". Burkina Faso accused Mali of conducting its offensive with the aid of an unnamed imperialist power and said that the conflict was "no longer a question of territorial claim but a direct open war between forces of reaction and revolution, between retrogression and the progressive Burkinabé Government." Burkinabé official media claimed that white soldiers were fighting alongside Malian forces. There were also rumours that Burkinabé exiles such as Lona Charles Ouattara were aiding the Malians. Radio Bamako countered by denouncing Burkina Faso as a country led by "thoughtless and misguided people". Though Burkina Faso had a mutual defence pact with

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

since 1983, Ghanaian leader

Jerry Rawlings Jerry John Rawlings (22 June 194712 November 2020) was a Ghanaian military officer and politician who led the country for a brief period in 1979, and then from 1981 to 2001. He led a military junta until 1992, and then served two terms as the de ...

chose not into invoke it. Despite its close relations with Sankara's government,

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

also refrained from aiding Burkina Faso. Immediately after hostilities began other African leaders attempted to institute a truce. One agreement was proposed by Libyan Foreign Minister

Ali Treki Ali Abdussalam Treki ( ar, علي عبد السلام التريكي‎; 10 October 1937 – 19 October 2015) was a Libyan diplomat in Muammar Gaddafi's regime. Treki served as one of Libya's top diplomats beginning in the 1970s and ending wi ...

with

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

officials, which included the establishment of a military observer force at the border including personnel from both of their countries. Another settlement was created by President of

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

and Organization of African Unity Chairman Abdou Diouf in tandem with President of Côte d'Ivoire

Félix Houphouët-Boigny Félix Houphouët-Boigny (; 18 October 1905 – 7 December 1993), affectionately called Papa Houphouët or Le Vieux ("The Old One"), was the first president of Ivory Coast, serving from 1960 until his death in 1993. A tribal chief, he wo ...

, President of

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

Gnassingbé Eyadéma Gnassingbé Eyadéma (; born Étienne Gnassingbé, 26 December 1935 – 5 February 2005) was the president of Togo from 1967 until his death in 2005, after which he was immediately succeeded by his son, Faure Gnassingbé. Eyadéma participated i ...

, President of

Benin Benin ( , ; french: Bénin , ff, Benen), officially the Republic of Benin (french: République du Bénin), and formerly Dahomey, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the nort ...

Mathieu Kérékou Mathieu Kérékou (; 2 September 1933 – 14 October 2015) was a Beninese politician who served as President of Benin from 1972 to 1991 and again from 1996 to 2006. After seizing power in a military coup, he ruled the country for 19 years, for ...

, and President of Niger

Seyni Kountché Seyni Kountché (1 July 1931 – 10 November 1987) was a Nigerien military officer who led a 1974 coup d'état that deposed the government of Niger's first president, Hamani Diori. He ruled the country as military head of state from 17 April ...

. Mali and Burkina Faso pledged to adhere to a ceasefire beginning at midnight on 27 December, but this was immediately abandoned. On 28 December a Malian detachment of 14 tanks and armoured cars escorted by 76 infantrymen staged an attack on the border village of Koloko. Moving along the Sikasso road, Burkinabé forces intercepted it at Mahon, from the border. Mali reported that one of its soldiers was killed and eight wounded in the raid. The Malian Air Force also attacked Djibo, Ouahigouya,

Tougan Tougan is a town located in the province of Sourou in Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest ...

, and

Dédougou Dédougou is a city located in western Burkina Faso. It is the capital city of Mouhoun Province and Boucle du Mouhoun Region Boucle du Mouhoun is one of Burkina Faso's 13 administrative regions. It was created on 2 July 2001 and had a populat ...

in retaliation for the air raids against Sikasso. The Democratic Union of the Malian People, the state party of Mali, claimed the attacks inflicted significant damage and loss of life. Meanwhile, Burkinabé

commandos Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin">40_Commando.html" ;"title="Royal Marines from 40 Commando">Royal Marines from 40 Commando on patrol in the Sangin area of Afghanistan are pictured A commando is a combatant, or operativ ...

attempted to cutoff Malian forward units from their support in the rear. On the morning of 30 December Burkina Faso and Mali agreed to an ANAD-brokered ceasefire. By the time the truce was reached Mali had occupied most of the Agacher Strip. Over 100 Burkinabé and approximately 40 Malian soldiers and civilians were killed during the war. In addition to this, both belligerents executed some of their prisoners of war in violation of

international standards international standard is a technical standard developed by one or more international standards organizations. International standards are available for consideration and use worldwide. The most prominent such organization is the International Org ...

. Sixteen Burkinabé and two Malian soldiers were held as prisoners of war. Official statistics given list the casualties as 48 Burkinabé and 11 Malians killed. Burkina Faso claimed to have destroyed four Malian tanks. The Burkinabé towns of Ouahigouya, Djibo, and Nassambou were left badly damaged by the fighting.

Aftermath

Effects on Mali and Burkina Faso

The conflict was quickly dubbed the "War of the Poor" by the international press; Burkina Faso and Mali were among the poorest states in the world. In its aftermath officials from the

International Committee of the Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité international de la Croix-Rouge) is a humanitarian organization which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and it is also a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signato ...

were allowed by both belligerents to visit prisoners of war. On 4 January 1986 Sankara presented military decorations to veterans of the conflict and publicly displayed several captured Malian armoured vehicles: two tanks and three other vehicles. One Malian tank of Daffé's southern ''groupement'' was put on display at

Ouagadougou Airport Ouagadougou Airport , officially Thomas Sankara International Airport Ouagadougou, is an international airport in the center of the capital city of Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso. It was built in the 1960s, and it is approximately southeast of t ...

. The tank had been abandoned in Burkina Faso after being damaged in a firefight during the initial invasion and was left behind after the Chief of the General Staff Bougary Sangaré prohibited a recovery mission while negotiations were ongoing. Sangaré and Dembéle were both arrested after the war. Traoré then held a postwar conference with the leaders of the armed forces at the National Police School. As a result of the tank incident, it was decided at the meeting to demote Sangaré from general to the rank of colonel and forcibly retire him, and discharge two lower officers from the army. Dembéle was also dismissed. Burkina Faso declared that the war was part of an "international plot" to bring down Sankara's government. It also rejected speculation that it was fought over rumoured mineral wealth in the Agacher. The country's relatively poor performance in the conflict damaged the domestic credibility of the CNR. Some Burkinabé soldiers were angered by Sankara's failure to prosecute the war more aggressively and rally a counteroffensive against Mali. It also demonstrated the country's weak international position and forced the CNR to craft a more moderate image of its policies and goals abroad. The Burkinabé Government made little reference to supporting revolution in other countries in the conflict's aftermath, while its relations with France modestly improved. At a rally held after the war, Sankara conceded that his country's military was not adequately armed and announced the commutation of sentences for numerous political prisoners. Burkina Faso subsequently acquired additional combat aircraft. In Mali, the war added to the country's economic difficulties but boosted the popularity of Traoré's struggling regime. During the conflict, Malian foreign embassies were flooded with expatriates offering to volunteer for wartime service, businessmen abroad donated 100 million

CFA franc The CFA franc (french: franc CFA, , Franc of the Financial Community of Africa, originally Franc of the French Colonies in Africa, or colloquially ; abbreviation: F.CFA) is the name of two currencies, the West African CFA franc, used in eight We ...

s to the government in support of the war effort, and migrant workers in Côte d'Ivoire remitted about 500 million CFA francs. Malians also donated cattle, butter, rice, and petrol to the regime. Despite the appeals for national unity during the war, in his New Year's message broadcast over Radio Mali, Traoré declared that there was a fifth column in the country and that Malian teachers had connections with Sankara. The police subsequently arrested seven people over suspicions that they were agents of the Burkinabé government. Six of them were later charged with "insulting the head of state, rumour-mongering, conspiracy and harbouring a fugitive."

Resolution of the border dispute

As per the ceasefire, a 16-member West African observer force was dispatched to the Agacher to monitor the border. It was withdrawn before the end of January 1986. One Ivorian helicopter crashed while overseeing the ceasefire. On 8 January the Red Cross oversaw the exchange of the two captured Malian soldiers and one interned Malian civilian for the 16 captive Burkinabé soldiers. At an ANAD summit in

Yamoussoukro Yamoussoukro (; , locally ) is the ''de jure'' capital of Ivory Coast and an autonomous district. As of the 2014 census, Yamoussoukro is the fifth most populous city in Ivory Coast with a population of 212,670. Located north-west of Abidjan, th ...

on 17 January Traoré and Sankara met and formalised an agreement to end hostilities. On 26 February 15 captured Malian civilians were exchanged for eight Burkinabé civilians in Bamako, marking the second and last of the prisoner exchanges. In March an Economic Community of West Africa summit was held in Ouagadougou and attended by both Sankara and Traoré. As a sign of reconciliation, the participants elected another Malian to replace the outgoing secretary general of the organisation. Mali and Burkina Faso reestablished formal diplomatic relations in June. Following the ceasefire Burkina Faso and Mali both petitioned the ICJ to impose interim measures to prevent further conflict until the court delivered its decision. Burkina Faso claimed that it had been the victim of Malian aggression, while Mali argued that it acted in self-defence by responding to Burkinabé occupation of its territory. Burkina Faso requested the ordered withdrawal of all troops from the region, but Mali argued this contravened the terms of the ANAD truce. The court responded by advising both parties to continue mediation under ANAD's auspices, work out a troop withdrawal agreement, and take all measures to avoid conflict pending the adjudication of the border dispute. The parties began their oral arguments before the ICJ in June, and the court issued a ruling on the matter by a five-member panel of judges on 22 December 1986. The court split the disputed territory among the parties; Mali received the more-densely populated western portion and Burkina Faso the eastern section centered on the Béli. Both countries indicated their satisfaction with the judgement.

Legacy

In Burkina Faso the conflict is often remembered as the "Christmas War". The Agacher Strip War remains the only full-fledged interstate war to be fought over territory in West Africa since European decolonisation.

References

Works cited

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

Television report on the war
by

Radio Télévision du Burkina The Radiodiffusion Télévision du Burkina is the national broadcaster of the West African state of Burkina Faso. Radiodiffusion Télévision du Burkina is headquartered in the capital city Ouagadougou. Generaldirector (CEO) of RTB is Marcel To� ...

{{Authority control 1985 in Burkina Faso 1985 in Mali Burkina Faso–Mali border Conflicts in 1985 Territorial disputes of Burkina Faso Territorial disputes of Mali Wars involving Burkina Faso Wars involving Mali