African Union (AU) Suspends Mali after Second Coup
The AU announced Mali's suspension with immediate effect and threatened the country with sanctions, after a second military coup in 9 months.
Gathogo Wanjiru 
The coup has sparked deep concerns over stability in the volatile Sahel region and warnings of economic penalties from across the international community.
The African Union "decides... to immediately suspend the Republic of Mali from participation in all activities of the African Union, its Organs and institutions, until normal constitutional order has been restored in the country", the body's Peace and Security Council said in a statement late Tuesday.
The move to suspend Mali follows a similar suspension on Sunday from the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas).
The AU called for the military to "urgently and unconditionally return to the barracks, and to refrain from further interference in the political processes in Mali".
While condemning the putsch "in the strongest terms possible", it added it was "deeply concerned about the evolving situation in Mali and its negative impact on the gains made thus far in the transition process in the country".
