加奥庆祝伊斯兰激进份子从马里北部撤退

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.

星期六，法国和马里联军从激进分子手中夺回加奥，激进分子逃走，未做任何抵抗。加奥居民几个月首次得以不受严苛的伊斯兰律法的束缚。

美国之音记者卢克目前在马里首都巴马科，他通过电话与加奥居民进行了交谈。他们说，伊斯兰激进分子现在躲藏在距离加奥10到15公里的村庄里。

一些居民说，加奥居民正在搜寻曾与伊斯兰主义占领者合作的人，并说这些合作者将受到严厉惩罚。

法国和马里军队也正在包围历史城市廷巴克图的激进武装份子。
马里军方消息来源说，军队在没有遭遇任何抵抗的情况下，已经抵达廷巴克图城边缘。

这个沙漠中城市是联合国教科文组织认定的文化遗迹。城中有几十座清真寺和纪念穆斯林圣徒的纪念碑。

当马里反叛武装份子与去年占据控制了马里北部大部分地区，并且开始向首都巴马科推进之后，法国军队于这个月初在马里展开攻势。