加奧慶祝伊斯蘭激進份子從馬裏北部撤退大綱

Residents of Mali's northern city of Gao played music in the streets, danced, smoked and wore Western-style clothing Sunday to celebrate the recapture of the city from Islamic extremists.

French and Malian forces retook the city Saturday from the Islamists, who fled without offering any resistance. The population of Gao is enjoying its first full day without Islamic sharia law in months.

The VOA West Africa correspondent (( Anne Look )), who is in the Malian capital, Bamako, spoke to residents of Gao by telephone. They told her the Islamists are in hiding, in villages 10 to 15 kilometers outside Gao.

Some residents said the people of Gao are hunting down anyone who collaborated with the Islamist occupiers, and they predicted severe punishment would be meted out.

French and Malian forces are also closing in on militants in the historic city of Timbuktu.

Malian military sources say troops have reached the edge of Timbuktu without meeting any resistance.

The ancient desert city is a UNESCO heritage site and home of dozens of mosques and monuments honoring ancient Muslim saints.

France began a military offensive in Mali earlier this month, after rebels who had seized control of much of the country's northern territory last year began pushing toward Bamako.星期天，馬裏北部城市加奧的居民走上街頭唱歌跳舞，身穿西式服裝，慶祝從伊斯蘭激進分子手中收復這座城市。

星期六，法國和馬裏聯軍從激進分子手中奪回加奧，激進分子逃走，未做任何抵抗。加奧居民幾個月首次得以不受嚴苛的伊斯蘭律法的束縛。

美國之音記者盧克目前在馬裏首都巴馬科，他通過電話與加奧居民進行了交談。他們說，伊斯蘭激進分子現在躲藏在距離加奧10到15公里的村莊裏。

一些居民說，加奧居民正在搜尋曾與伊斯蘭主義佔領者合作的人，並說這些合作者將受到嚴厲懲罰。

法國和馬裏軍隊也正在包圍歷史城市廷巴克圖的激進武裝份子。
馬裏軍方消息來源說，軍隊在沒有遭遇任何抵抗的情況下，已經抵達廷巴克圖城邊緣。

這個沙漠中城市是聯合國教科文組織認定的文化遺蹟。城中有幾十座清真寺和紀念穆斯林聖徒的紀念碑。

當馬裏反叛武裝份子與去年佔據控制了馬裏北部大部分地區，並且開始向首都巴馬科推進之後，法國軍隊於這個月初在馬裏展開攻勢。