World Bank pauses Mali payments
THE World Bank has announced that it had temporarily paused payments to operations in Mali following a military coup, while the man expected to become the new prime minister warned sanctions would only complicate the country's crisis. The Bank's actions add to pressure on Mali's military leadership after chief security ally France announced on Thursday it was suspending joint operations with Malian troops in order to press for a return to civilian rule. The military's overthrow of Mali's transitional president last week, its second coup in nine months, has drawn international condemnation and raised fears the political crisis will weaken…