Mali

A landlocked West African country, Mali borders Algeria, Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea, Cote d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso and Niger. Despite a period of largely democratic rule after the 1991 popular uprisings, a 2012 rebellion by Tuareg in the north of the country triggered a military coup and subsequent foreign intervention to re-establish central control under an army backed interim government. While press freedom has been historically very good for the region, major concerns about rights now include possible war crimes committed by all sides during the conflict in the North and the persistence of harmful traditional practices, particularly those involving women and girls.